The Boathouse CIC is a new and exciting venture emerging at the heart of the Icehouse Creative Quarter. It is a social enterprise with local people at the helm facilitated by Steve Drury from Rooff as part of their CSR strategy. The team will benefit from the company’s business expertise combined with the artistic leadership of Carole Pluckrose who has been actively involved in the arts in Barking and Dagenham since 1984. Boathouse CIC will work closely with Creative Barking and Dagenham to encourage arts participation and engagement in a borough that has been identified by the Arts Council England as a focus for arts development.

“The setting up of the new Boathouse CIC is a key strategic move on behalf of Rooff Property LLP to further deliver the original vision and ambition of expanding the creative industries and cultural activities at the Ice House Quarter in Barking. The new CIC is a culmination of Rooff`s long term vision for the development of the creative and cultural quarter, which began back in 2005 with a gentle stroll down Abbey Road revealing the derelict and empty historic Granary and Malthouse buildings! These forgotten and run down buildings offered an amazing opportunity for creative regeneration and that first walk along Abbey Road lead to a long journey, via much collaboration with the Local Authority and other regional development partners."

As well as its corporate responsibility strategy Rooff and the Boathouse CIC will hire the Boathouse facilities on a commercial basis to companies, local authorities , theatre companies etc who wish to take advantage of its beautiful riverside setting for away days, training, rehearsals and performances. This will enable the growth of this brand new area in concert with the other arts and community venues in Barking.

Rooff completed the restoration of the Granary and construction of the new extension in July 2011 and have since then been attracting more and more creative and entrepreneurial talent to the quarter.