River and Rowing Museum Foundation

Analysis

River and Rowing Museum Foundation is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in Oxfordshire. It was registered in December 1990, 36 years ago. Its declared purposes cover education/training, arts/culture/heritage/science, amateur sport and environment/conservation/heritage, which this site groups under arts, culture, heritage and science. Legally it is a charitable company (Companies House number 02548216). It says it provides buildings/facilities/open space, provides services and provides advocacy/advice/information.

In the financial year ending March 2025, River and Rowing Museum Foundation reported income of £657k and spending of £1.6m, spending 242% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from March 2021 to March 2025, income grew from £490k to £657k (+34%), an average of +7.6% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to March 2025, when income rose by 60%. Over the whole period it spent 266% of the income it received.

Among 17,634 England and Wales charities whose main cause is arts, culture, heritage and science and that reported income, River and Rowing Museum Foundation sits at the 93rd percentile: it is larger than about 93% of them. Against every charity in England and Wales with reported income it ranks in the 92nd percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Tramshed Arts (£657k), The Bomb Factory Art Foundation (£658k) and Iford Arts Limited (£655k).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from charitable activities 46%, trading 28%, donations and legacies 13% and investments 13%. Charitable activities took 79% of spending and raising funds 21%. It employed 14 people.

Data notes from the register: Spending has exceeded income in each of the last three reported years, so the charity has been drawing on reserves or other funds.