3 Jul 2026
Officials are still facing the threat of a multi-million-pound tax liability linked to the sale of their old base but insist the project was focused on clinicians.
Allister Webb
Job Title
RCVS headquarters in Hardwick Street. Image: RCVS
Buying and renovating its new London headquarters has now cost the RCVS more than twice what it received from selling its former home, according to its own documents.
College leaders have defended their handling of the Hardwick Street project, insisting members and associates were its “central focus”.
But the organisation has also acknowledged it remains at risk of having to pay a multi-million pound tax bill linked to the sale of its previous base – five years after the deal was completed.
The issues have re-emerged following publication of the college’s annual report for 2025, which was released ahead of Royal College Day today (3 July). In total, more than £28 million has now been spent on the Hardwick Street premises in Clerkenwell, from where college staff have been working since May last year.
The building was purchased in early 2022 in a £22.3 million deal, shortly after the college sold its previous base at Belgravia House in Westminster for slightly less than £14 million.
A college spokesperson confirmed funds from the sale were put towards the Hardwick Street project, with the remainder drawn from reserves built up for that and other initiatives.
Latterly, a further £5.8 million, excluding VAT, was spent on renovation and refurbishment works once the previous tenant occupants vacated the site in 2024. The college acknowledged that figure was at the “higher end”, but insisted the work had been completed within budget.
But while individual clinicians and professional bodies have been reluctant to comment publicly – even when they have previously raised questions about the project – concerns persist about both the scale of the college’s commitment to the project and its impact on the professions.
One senior vet, a long-standing critic of the college, told Vet Times the project was “a big up-shift in spend, ambition and hubris” as he questioned the extent to which most clinicians would benefit from it.
Although the college did not reference the Hardwick Street project in its statement accompanying the annual report, it has rejected questions about the project by referencing comments it published at the time of its opening.
Chief executive Lizzie Lockett claimed the building would help the college achieve the collaboration goal at the heart of its strategic plan.
She added: “Whether attending events, exploring RCVS Knowledge’s archives, using the members’ area and meeting rooms, or benefitting from the outputs that the new space enables, the building has been developed with members and associates as a central focus.”
The annual report also emphasised the use of “pre-existing assets and equipment” during the refurbishment work, and claimed the project reflected the college’s sustainability commitment. But the college still faces a potential financial challenge over what its accounts describe as “a contingent liability of £2.8m relating to a potential VAT charge on the sale of Belgravia House”.
The charge has been referenced in each set of published accounts since the sale was completed, though the college had not responded to questions relating to it at the time of going to press. The accounts also revealed an increase of more than £2 million in spending on “regulatory functions” during 2025, taking that total to more than £14.6 million.
But income streams have also increased, with the amount drawn from vets and nurses climbing from around £15.9 million in 2024 to almost £17.3 million.