The Board of Trustees of the Royal Photographic Society has announced plans to put RPS House in Bristol up for sale. The decision follows a thorough review of the RPS's evolving operational needs and aims to unlock the property's value to support the ongoing modernisation of the organisation.
RPS House, which has served as the RPS's headquarters since 2019, was originally intended to be a bustling visitor destination and activity hub. The RPS's operations have increasingly moved online over the past five years, making a single, centralised physical location less necessary and less sustainable.
Dan Jones, CEO of the RPS comments:
"RPS House is a wonderful building, but times have changed. The decision to sell RPS House will help us achieve our strategy to ensure long-term financial sustainability, with the proceeds from the sale helping to fund investment in member services, support the Society's public-benefit charitable objectives, and explore new initiatives to advance its mission of creating a more responsive and relevant organisation for existing and new members. In addition this move will enable us hold more of our activities at locations across the UK, allowing for more collaboration with our volunteer groups and better interaction with both members and the public."
As part of this transition, the RPS will seek a smaller office in the Bristol area to serve as an administrative centre. No redundancies are anticipated as part of the move and the search for a new location will begin in Autumn 2024, with a move anticipated during Summer 2025.
For activities requiring physical locations, such as exhibitions and print assessments, the RPS plans to utilise venues around the UK, either hired or provided by partners. The RPS has recently made significant strides in digitising its administration of Distinctions and this focus will continue. Print assessments will remain an option for Associate and Fellowship Distinctions, but will evolve to be held at various locations nationwide to better serve our members and volunteers.
A full Exhibitions programme will continue to be held at RPS House until Summer 2025.
If you have any questions about the sale of RPS House, or want to express your views on the matter please email: governance@rps.org