Welcome to Champney Treasure House
We are delighted to welcome you back to Champney Treasure House. We look forward to everyone visiting to explore and be inspired by everything that our newly renovated cultural venue has to offer. Champney Treasure House is a place for learning, a place to celebrate and a place to discover.
As well as the newly revamped library, art gallery, museum, archives, cafe and Beverley's Tourist Information Centre you will now find the Customer Service Centre and Registrars service all under one roof, plus a new fully immersive sensory room and beautified landscaped gardens for all to use. You might also have noticed we have changed our name to Champney Treasure House in honour of John Edward Champney, a local businessman from the early 1900s who made several significant donations to the original Beverley Public Library and Art Gallery.
On this page
Updates and news
Services and opening times
There are a range of council services inside Champney Treasure House. Archives, libraries, museums and registrars have their own website with opening times, what's on, services available and more.
The gardens
Open to the public and available for wedding parties to take photos during their special day, the landscaped gardens are a place for peace and rest for all.
Enjoy seating areas, a sundial, and pergolas. The garden was designed with the aim of improving the environment and includes:
- planting and bedding areas
- a biodiverse lawn
- areas designed to encourage insects and wildlife
- new sights and scents.
There will also be an information board to explain the history of the gardens.
Tower views
Take the lift or stairs to the very top of the Treasure House for 360-degree views over the roof-tops of Beverley and the Minster.
Cafe
Find the perfect resting spot on the first floor. Along the corridor towards the art gallery, the cafe serves sandwiches, paninis, delicious cakes, pastries and scones and a selection of drinks. Immerse yourself in the culture of the Champney Treasure House.
Loyalty card
Pick up a loyalty card; get a stamp for each hot drink purchased, and your 7th is free.
Bring your own mug
Save 20p on your hot drinks when you bring your own reusable mug.
*Please check that mugs are 14oz or more in size, so your drink won’t spill.
Cafe Opening Times
- Monday to Friday - 9.30am to 3.15pm
- Saturdays - 9am to 2.45pm
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Beverley Tourist Information Centre
Friendly staff are ready and waiting to help visitors discover the town. The market town has so much to offer, from a pleasant shopping experience to a rich cultural heritage. Stop by and chat to the staff who are fully trained to help with holiday accommodation, what’s on guides, ticket sales and much more. Find opening times on the Visit East Yorkshire
Find out more about tourism in Beverley on Visit East Yorkshire
Opening times
- Monday to Friday - 9.30am to 5pm
- Saturday - 9am to 4pm
Meeting Room
There is a meeting room available to hire inside Champney Treasure House. For details please see the listing on the meeting room directory:
- Education room suitable for up to 50 people.
Accessibility
As part of the 2024 transformation, venue accessibility of the Champney Treasure House was greatly improved.
There are:
- Disabled toilets with radar key entry
- Lift between floors
- Blue badge parking spaces available next to the entrance
- Fully immersive sensory room
- Changing Places
Getting here and parking
Champney Rd, Beverley HU17 8HE
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Pay and Display parking behind the Treasure House on Saturdays only. Nearest pay and display car park is Grayburn Lane. Limited on street parking is available within easy walking distance. Disabled parking bays directly outside the entrance.
It is a five minute walk to the train station and bus station in Beverley.
History
In the late 19th century there was a growing trend for public galleries which provided education and a morally uplifting purpose to local residents. In 1902 John Champney approached the borough council with and offer to fund a building to house a public library, museum and art gallery. William Spencer donated further funds to the venture, buying the plot of land where the Edwardian building stands today.
The library and picture gallery, showcasing the portraits of its benefactors, opened in 1906. Four years later the museum and art gallery was formally opened. The first exhibitions included an Italian Madonna, a portrait of Archbishop Rokeby by Angelica Kauffman R.A. and works by local artist Fred Elwell. As was customary of the time, museum artefacts were displayed alongside works of art.
In 1928 Champney funded an addition to the building, housing the reference library on the ground floor, and the second art gallery above.
In 2007, £3.9m of National Lottery Heritage funding provided a new home for the East Riding Archives Service in the East Riding Treasure House. This included the tower, with its spectacular views across the market town, enabling disabled access to all floors so everybody could enjoy the culture on display. The Archives Service gained purpose-built environmentally controlled storage and public research rooms, helping to preserve the collections of East Riding Archives and East Riding Museums for generations to come.
About the 2024 transformation
The £3.3 million scheme aimed to create a welcoming cultural destination for the East Riding, as well as the modernisation of some services and facilities. The transformation saw the relocation of more cultural services from around Beverley into the improved space, enhancing the customer experience and ensuring best value for money. Some of these changes included a new customer service centre and enhanced library, and a new location within the building for the reference library. The council’s registration services relocated there from Walkergate House. There is a new Changing Places facility, and the Champney Gardens were landscaped.
The new complex is now known as the Champney Treasure House, after John Champney.
Media enquiries
For any media enquiries, please contact the press office at East Riding of Yorkshire Council.