The Museum of English Rural Life is owned by the University of Reading. The Museum reopened in October 2016 after a £3 redevelopment project, which radically transformed the public displays.

The new Museum challenges perceptions about rural England by revealing the historical and contemporary relevance of country life. The new interactive, immersive galleries explore questions of identity, environment, technology, culture and health.

The MERL is a proud part of far-reaching and diverse communities, bridging town and country, thanks to being a museum of rural life situated in the heart of the town of Reading.

We work with communties locally and nationally to show our relevance of our collections and themes to a wide variety of people and stakeholders. We have volunteers involved in a variety of projects.