In 1934, it moved to its current headquarters on Portland Place, with the building being opened by King George V and Queen Mary.

The original charter of 1837 set out the purpose of the Royal Institute to be: '... the general advancement of Civil Architecture, and for promoting and facilitating the acquirement of the knowledge of the various arts and sciences connected therewith...' The RIBA's operational framework is provided by its byelaws, which are more frequently updated than the charter.

[9] The design of the institute's Mycenaean lions medal and the Latin motto Usui civium, decori urbium[10] has been attributed to Thomas Leverton Donaldson, who had been honorary secretary until 1839.

[11] The RIBA Guide to its Archive and History (Angela Mace,1986) records that the first official version of the badge of the Lion Gate at Mycenae was used as a bookplate for the institute's library and publications from 1835 to 1891, when it was redesigned by J. H. Metcalfe.

The description in the 1837 by-laws was: "gules, two lions rampant guardant or, supporting a column marked with lines chevron, proper, all standing on a base of the same; a garter surrounding the whole with the inscription Institute of British Architects, anno salutis MDCCCXXXIV; above a mural crown proper, and beneath the motto Usui civium decori urbium ".

[12] In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the RIBA and its members had a leading part in the promotion of architectural education in the United Kingdom, including the establishment of the Architects' Registration Council of the United Kingdom (ARCUK) and the Board of Architectural Education under the Architects (Registration) Acts, 1931 to 1938.

The RIBA Guide to its Archive and History (1986) has a section on the "Statutory registration of architects" with a bibliography extending from a draft bill of 1887 to one of 1969.

The Guide's section on "Education" records the setting up in 1904 of the RIBA Board of Architectural Education, and the system by which any school which applied for recognition, whose syllabus was approved by the Board and whose examinations were conducted by an approved external examiner, and whose standard of attainment was guaranteed by periodical inspections by a "Visiting Board" from the BAE, could be placed on the list of "recognized schools" and its successful students could qualify for exemption from RIBA examinations.

[24] The initiative is designed to support, inspire and provide a voice as students and graduates transition from study to practice.

The RIBA sees itself as a lobbying organisation acting for architects, "for better buildings, stronger communities, and higher environmental standards".

[25] For example, in 2005 in response to concerns that the UK government's Private Finance Initiative did not offer good value for money, RIBA put forward a model known as "Smart PFI", under which a traditionally appointed design team would prepare "example plans" which would be finalised and costed by PFI bidders.

Members gain access to all the institute's services and receive its monthly magazine the RIBA Journal and articles on its website, RIBAJ.com.

[41] The RIBA received £172 million[42] from the sale of its stake in NBS, some of which was reinvested to provide a reliable income stream for the institute.

This Grade II* listed building was designed by architect George Grey Wornum for the institute and features sculptures by Edward Bainbridge Copnall and James Woodford.

The building is open to the public, and includes a library, architectural bookshop, a café, bar, exhibition galleries and lecture theatre.

In September 2021, following the COVID-19 pandemic and an £8 million budget deficit in the year ending December 2020, the RIBA announced plans to sell 76 Portland Place and to reduce staff numbers.

Chief executive Alan Vallance said 89% of RIBA's staff only wanted to work two or three days a week from an office, so 76 Portland Place was surplus to requirements.

[53] Its collections include:[54] The overcrowded conditions of the library was one of the reasons why the RIBA moved from 9 Conduit Street (where it had been since 1859) to larger premises at 66 Portland Place in 1934.

At the same time the RIBA Library Drawing and Archives Collections moved from 21 Portman Place to new facilities in the Henry Cole Wing at the V&A.

Under the Partnership new study rooms were opened where members of the public could view items from the RIBA and V&A architectural collections under the supervision of curatorial staff.

In June 2022, the RIBA announced it would be terminating its partnership with the V&A in 2027, "by mutual agreement", ending the permanent architecture gallery at the museum.

Artefacts will be transferred back to the RIBA's existing collections, with some rehoused at the institute's headquarters at 66 Portland Place, set to become a new House of Architecture following a £20 million refurbishment.

The RIBA Plan of Work, first developed in 1963, is a stage-by-stage model considered "the definitive design and process management tool for the UK construction industry".

[76] The RIBA has been criticised by architects outside southeast England as a London-centric organisation which does not reach out to all members in the United Kingdom and beyond.

[3][4] The organisation has also been accused of institutional racism,[77] of having a "deep, systemic disengagement from the membership", of lacking transparency,[5] and being "increasingly irrelevant" to architects.

[78] In March 2022, young architects began a campaign to get the next RIBA president to move beyond "empty slogans and self-serving initiatives" and shake up an institute seen as "out of touch" with the wider profession.

[80] Days later, the RIBA announced a restriction on new members participating in the elections (starting on 28 June 2022), a rule change described by the FAF as "an outrageous lack of transparency" and "exclusionary tactics".

[84] In December 2022, the RIBA decided not to "proceed with the development and sale of an equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) guidance book for practices, originally planned for 2024".

Between 31 March and 15 June 2020, he temporarily stepped back over a matter in his private life,[86] reported by the RIBA as a "serious incident" to the Charity Commission.

Confidentiality has been weaponised and woe betide anyone who wants to ask difficult questions...."[90] A Council Board Advisory Group was established, with a QC investigating complaints.