Henley’s River and Rowing Museum building up for sale for £3m

An award-winning museum building which was closed in September due to financial pressures is on sale for £3 million.

The River and Rowing Museum in Henley, Oxfordshire was listed by commercial real estate services company CBRE.

The 35,688 sq ft building has two different parts and is linked by a glass and concrete footbridge with 78 parking spaces.

Interim director Kevin Sandhu said: “I think if it ended up being something that was still used by the community, I think that would be a really good outcome.”

The museum’s foundation trust made the decision to shut down the operation in July, citing rising costs and is working with Oxfordshire agent Richard Venables to find a suitable buyer.

The building was designed by David Chipperfield Architects and opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.

In October 2022 the museum underwent a £1.1 million refurbishment project, which closed the building for nine months to fix it’s leaking roof, heating, electrical and cooling systems and refitted its shop and café.

The building has three large galleries which are in the process of being cleared and none of the museums 35,000 objects are included in the sale.

The office spaces are currently being used by the trust as it continues to wind down the operation. While the second building has been let as self-contained office suites.

Mr Sandhu explained that Henley Town Council owns the land, the foundation trust had a 99 year leasehold and almost 30 years has passed.

He said they are working closely with the council and depending on who purchases the building the council may have to modify the lease.

Mr Sandhu said that a priority was ensuring that the sale ensured the foundation trust was able to support its future operations.

He said that while the building’s design which was inspired by river boathouses, was “iconic” however, its size was something of a “double-edged sword.”

He said he would like to see the space as something that could be used by the community but they needed to assess the “appetite of the market.”

He added: “I think lots of people will have strong personal views on it, which I totally understand and respect because, for a long time, it has served the community.