Over the last century, the Martyrs School has changed hands and uses, from its inception as a public school to a primary school after World War II, before briefly becoming part of Stow College until it was taken over by St. Mungo’s Academy. From the 1970s it was an art centre, initially run by the Forum Arts Trust before Glasgow Museums took over the reins. At present, it houses Glasgow’s Social Work Leaving Care Services.

Mackintosh’s influence as a senior assistant on the project can be seen, but his role on the project has been embellished due to his later fame, and it is more likely the overall design came from one or both of the founding partners of the firm Honeyman & Keppie, both of whom are named John. As well as his later celebrity, another reason the school is associated with Mackintosh is that it is built on Parson Street, the same street young Charles was born on.