River & Rowing Museum prepares to rationalise collections as building is listed for sale

The now-closed River & Rowing Museum in Henley-upon-Thames is preparing to rationalise its collections ahead of the sale of the building.

The venue is currently listed on Global Commercial Real Estate Services (CBRE) UK with an asking price of £3m.

The listing describes the 35,689 square foot former museum as “an award-winning building designed by the internationally renowned David Chipperfield Architects and opened by Queen Elizabeth II in November 1998”, within easy walking distance of Henley railway station.

“The design is inspired by local river boathouses and the traditional wooden barns of Oxfordshire – a simple and clear architectural idea that makes natural associations with the surrounding area,” the listing adds.

If the venue sells quickly and requires the collections to be moved at short notice, the museum team plans to transfer objects to a secure, off-site storage facility owned by the museum that already houses some of its large objects.

Museums Journal understands that two working groups have been established between the museum’s trustees and its seven remaining staff in order to prepare for the sale of the building, and the decant and rationalisation of the collections.

A Buildings Working Group is exploring options for the building. Depending on the outcome of this process, funds raised from the sale of the building might be used to support the development of a new, smaller, museum in Henley.

A Collections Working Group has been established to explore all options for the accessioned and non-accessioned collections.

The group has established an ethical framework for decision-making, which brings together an agreed set of principles and preferred outcomes for the collections. It plans to take full account of museum sector ethics and standards in this process.

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Museums Journal understands that no decisions have been made at this point about future homes for the collections beyond a formal agreement on the preferred outcomes.

The museum is hoping to have an indication on the future of the building, the completion of the collections transfer procedures, and the initiation of its disposal process started by the end of 2025.

The disposal process will begin with a general expression of interest stage, targeted at museums and other appropriate organisations using the Museums Association’s Find an Object listings, other publications and direct contacts with relevant museums.

Indications of whether a smaller Henley museum might be possible are likely to emerge from this process and the associated discussions.

The museum closed to the public in September 2025 due to increasing financial pressures. Trustees say they took the decision to close while the foundation still retained significant funds, in order to enable them to manage the closure ethically and respectfully and with a focus on achieving the best public outcomes possible for the collections.

The museum’s education programme is continuing on an outreach basis using other venues in Henley.

The board has said it is committed to the safe and careful management of the collections throughout the process.