Time up for horologist headquarters put up for sale

A country home in Nottinghamshire that has housed a timekeeping museum and the national horologist body for more than 50 years has been put up for sale.

The British Horological Institute (BHI) and the Museum of Timekeeping have been based at Upton Hall, near Newark-on-Trent, since 1973.

Gary Williams, chairman of the BHI, said the Grade II-listed building was becoming too expensive to maintain.

The building has been put on the market for £2.3m as the organisations search for a new home.

Horology is the study of time and how to measure it, and Mr Williams said the BHI wanted to provide more training for horologists but was having to spend too much on building maintenance.

"It's a very difficult decision," he told BBC Radio Nottingham. "We're now in a situation where the hall is requiring far too much upkeep which is too expensive.

"We should be providing services like training and support to horologists, not... keeping maintenance going on a Grade II-listed building.

"There's lots and lots of little jobs and when you add it up. To get the building to a sustainable state you're looking at a fair few million pounds – that's a fair few million pounds we don't have."

The BHI, which was formed in 1858 and separated from the Museum of Timekeeping more than a decade ago, supports horologists in clock and watch repair and creation.

Mr Williams said they were looking for a new premises that would provide space for the organisation to carry out workshops with members.

He added: "We rather like the building but can't afford the upkeep. Unless somebody is going to come along with a rather large chequebook and sign off on a major refurbishment then we have no option.

"[We need] somewhere with more manageable maintenance costs but more closely aligned to our needs.

"We can't predict how long it will take until we get an acceptable offer but we know that we can't stay where we are indefinitely so we're getting the ball rolling."

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