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Issue 107, September 2014
Thames tranquillity
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A free weekend berth for your boat at a Castle Marina P118
BRIDE AND GROOM IN BOAT HIJACK! P2
The approach to the picturesque Bray Lock. See feature on P16. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
Cash boost for canal dredging projects
SEVEN MILES FROM LAND P18
A £3-million package of additional investment in the waterways will improve the experience for boaters and other visitors. Around £2 million will fund dredging projects on the Erewash Canal, Trent & Mersey and a number of sections of the North Stratford Canal. This completes the full £7-million
FROM NARROWBOAT TO BARROW BOAT P110
will recruit 42 people to keep alive traditional techniques of canal building. Trainees will learn the arts of lime mortaring, stonemasonry and carpentry among other skills essential to maintaining and improving the network. The Waterway Heritage Skills project will see 14 trainees recruited each year with each post lasting 12 months. They will work alongside the trust’s staff across the country on projects such as the winter stoppage programme.
P19
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Walton Marina
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Walton on Thames
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and towpaths, improving sanitary stations and mooring locations and making lock operation easier. The projects will take place between now and April 2015. CRT chief executive Richard Parry said: “I’ve spent a lot of time listening to boaters, through my series of open meetings and elsewhere, and I know
that these are some of the things that have a real bearing on their experience of our waterways.” This additional investment is available because the trust is anticipating that it will exceed its revenue target for the year and earn more money than originally planned. • Continued on page 2
Keeping heritage skills alive Anniversary water festival Sharing mooring sites OVER the next three years, the Canal & River Trust CHANGES are to be made to four visitor
509 BOATS FOR SALE Starts on
dredging programme by the Canal & River Trust this year as part of its commitment to deliver £80 million of dredging over the 10 years from 2013. In addition, just over £1 million of new money will go into a variety of other customer service improvements. These will include further vegetation management, repairing waterway walls
Tel 01603 717 804
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A MAJOR waterways event is to be held on the river Nene over the August Bank Holiday weekend in 2015. Northampton Festival of Water, which will also celebrate the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Northampton Arm, will be centred around the waterfront at Becket’s Park. It is being organised jointly by the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) Events Team and IWA Northampton Branch, with the full support of Northampton Borough Council, the Environment Agency and the Canal & River Trust.
mooring sites in central London to help make sure the limited space is shared fairly between visiting boats and those who make the capital their home. The plan by the CRT, which is being put in place in August, was worked on with the Better Relationship Group and benefits from feedback from boaters. The sites are in Victoria Park, Broadway Market, Little Venice and Kensal Green. See story on P3.
2 NEWS
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AS I cycled to work this morning (not along a towpath!) there was a definite nip in the air and I have missed the swifts screeching over the rooftops for the last couple of weeks. But the season has some way to go before we think about battening down the hatches for winter and the festival programme is still in full swing. In this issue we have reports from events ranging from Audlem to Stratford, Blackburn and Burscough to Coventry and Lymm. Peter Underwood continues his travels to the northern reaches of the Lancaster Canal on page 111 and Les Heath braves The Wash on page 18. In contrast to last month I have been ‘down south’ to the Thames, see my feature on page 16 and to the Midlands to visit Trinity Marina, page 59. At the end of September our team will be travelling to the Parkhead Canal Festival at Dudley, look forward to seeing you there. I am sure boaters will welcome the additional dredging projects announced by the Canal & River Trust although mooring restrictions are still rattling some cages around the network. With vacancies on several of the waterway partnerships and a new round of open boaters’ meetings coming up perhaps you will have an opportunity to make your views count.
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Lancaster mooring restrictions provoke swift reaction By Peter Underwood
THE imposition of 48-hour mooring restrictions on most of the popular moorings along the Lancaster Canal in mid-July provoked a swift reaction from boaters. At a well-attended meeting convened with days of the signs appearing, and organised by a local boater of longstanding, Colin Grundy, there was an almost unanimous demand that the Canal & River Trust think again. It was claimed that the 48-hour moorings destroy the relaxed nature of the Lancaster Canal and are already deterring visiting boats from returning, to the detriment of canalside businesses. The resolution agreed by the meeting stated: “This meeting of resident and visiting boaters on the Lancaster Canal calls on the Canal and River Trust’s NW waterways manager Chantelle Seaborn to immediately reverse the imposition of 48-hour moorings on the Lancaster Canal, removing all signage and reverting to the previous situation.” It was felt that the restrictions had been introduced without proper research or consultation, with either local or visiting boaters and they would not achieve their stated objective of ‘fairness’ as there is insufficient usable mooring space for the number of boats wanting it, so moorings will
remain first-come-first-served regardless of timing restrictions. CRT was accused of failing to measure and establish an existing problem, therefore having no means of measuring the failure or success of the 48hour mooring experiment. It has admitted there is no prospect of enforcing a 48-hour mooring restriction and it is pointless to make rules which cannot be enforced. The meeting urged Chantelle Seaborn to focus on the creation of many additional mooring spaces around the most popular parts of the canal, along with a programme of dredging throughout the length of the canal as this would do most to enable resident and visiting boats to enjoy the canal. Since the resolution was sent to CRT at both regional and national level, an estimated 100 or more boaters along the canal have also posted copies to Ms Seaborn, according to Colin Grundy. Other boaters have also painted or taped over the new 48-hour mooring signs. In the latest Towpath Mooring Management Report, CRT services manager Dean Davies stated: “Some local boaters have expressed concern at the extent of the changes and so at some of the longer mooring sites a mix of seven day and 48 hour moorings will be introduced during August, with further consultation planned on the right mix of mooring sites in the future.”
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Newly weds hijack narrowboat! NARROWBOAT Jonesfold was highjacked at Soulbury Top Lock on the Grand Union Canal by bride and groom Helen Jamieson-Batt and Oliver Batt following their marriage on July 25. The happy couple stepped on to the bow of the boat – taking skipper David Jones by surprise – and travelled in style from the middle lock to the top lock where they were greeted by the wedding party. Helen described it afterwards as a ‘truly magical moment’. She said: “The narrowboat on our wedding day was a super special event for us as we both met at sea working on the P&O Oriana cruise ship. Our wedding had a travel theme with the three key methods of transport: trains, boats and planes. “Trains as Ollie had miniature steam locomotives, boats our time at sea and planes as Ollie has a commercial licence. We were even drinking a bottle of Dom Perignon saved from when we met at sea 12 years ago.” Guests had all been transported on a vintage London bus from Little Brickhill to Horwood House. Helen explained: “As we love spending summer afternoons by the three locks, we thought it would be a perfect place to stop and open the champs. We couldn’t believe our luck that a narrowboat was coming and even more that they let us jump on the front to go through the lock!”
The happy couple in the lock. The couple expressed their special thanks to David and Liz on board Jonesfold and presented them with a bottle of bubbly in return for the gatecrash.
• Continued from page 1
More money for dredging projects It will be targeted at specific projects across the network, identified locally from customer feedback including: • improving sanitary stations on the North West and Midlands canals, the Kennet & Avon Canal and in London • lock operation improvements on the Calder & Hebble and Huddersfield Narrow Canal • tackling more offside vegetation in the South West, London and on the Shropshire Union Canal; and, • providing better visitor moorings in Chester, Macclesfield, London, Birmingham and the East Midlands. The plans have the support of the Trust’s independent Navigation Advisory Group – a panel of boaters from a variety of backgrounds who provide advice and feedback on issues including safety, maintenance, moorings and licensing. Boaters are invited to send any further suggestions to their local waterway team. Group chairman Mike Carter added: “It is great to see the Trust delivering on its commitment to invest to improve those services that boaters value the most. My group has appreciated the chance to input our experience into this process.”
Additional investment • • • • • • • • •
North Stratford Canal dredging Trent & Mersey Canal dredging Erewash Canal dredging National spot dredging programme Towpath improvements including wash wall Sanitary station improvements Offside vegetation with access improvements Visitor mooring improvements Lock operation improvements
£400,000 £200,000 £500,000 £900,000 £375,000 £225,000 £225,000 £165,000 £55,000
● Richard Parry will be kicking off a new round of open boater meetings with a Facebook Q&A between 6-8pm on Tuesday, September 16. This will be a chance for all who’ve been out and about during the summer season to have their questions answered by the man at the top. Take part on the night by heading to www.facebook.com/CanalRiverTrust
Ollie and Helen adopt the ‘Titanic’ pose on the bow of nb Jonesfold. PHOTOS SUPPLIED
Canalside start to married life
By Geoff Wood
A YOUNG couple had a canalside start to married life. After their wedding, Keith and Kerrie Melrose were whisked by Rolls Royce to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Marsden. There Kerrie from Lindley, Huddersfield, and Keith from Edinburgh boarded the Marsden shuttle barge which took them a mile up the canal to Standedge Visitor Centre at Tunnel End. For the couple had chosen the visitor centre for the reception and as champagne corks popped, the happy couple gazed first at each other and then at the canalside scene outside. Kerrie said: “We just wanted something a little bit different.”
Keith and Kerrie afloat on the canal.
PHOTO: GEOFF WOOD
Horse rescued after boater raises the alarm By Bob Clarke
UNABLE to stand and struggling to keep its head above water, a horse was in danger of drowning in the Birmingham Canal at Coseley when a passing boater saw its predicament and called the emergency services. The horse was unable to move to shallower water because a chain round its neck was tethered to a stake in the canal bank and it was forced to keep swimming to keep its head above water.
An eight-man crew from the West Midlands Fire Service freed the chain and got the horse into shallower water where it could stand. They then put two slings round the horse and heaved it on to the bank – where it promptly started to graze. The RSPCA monitored the rescue and took charge of the horse while they tried to trace its owner. RSPCA inspector Paul Seadon said: “To tether a horse next to a canal is dangerous. Tethering of animals is certainly not recommended.”
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Pop-up consultations lead to positive changes By Polly Player
THE Canal & River Trust has begun a rollout of improvements across London’s waterways, as a result of its new scheme of hosting pop-up consultations to gather input from local London boaters. Beginning in mid-August, some fairly wide-reaching amendments have been made to mooring stay time rules and mooring provision at some of London’s most popular mooring sites, which will be reviewed again in November. The core changes that have been made are as follows: Victoria Park moorings, which previously permitted a maximum of 14 days stay along the entire stretch, have now been divided half-and-half into 14day moorings and 7-day moorings respectively. Broadway Market has been allocated an additional three mooring spaces,
Canal festival planned to coincide with battle anniversary By Bob Clarke
TALKS are to be held in the autumn on the possibility of a major two-day canal festival on the Wyrley & Essington Canal at Wednesfield, Wolverhampton, in August next year. The idea has come from former City Mayor Coun Phil Bateman following the success of a canal-based event in the area that attracted a number of boats, a floating market and over 1500 people. He is now looking at a larger festival which would stretch from Bentley Bridge into Wednesfield and will be approaching the city council for support. “I’ve got a year to pull it off and I am determined to do so,” he said. The event would coincide with the anniversary of the Battle of Wodensfield in early August. The battle in 910, thought to have been fought in Wednesfield, was seen as a key element in forging the unification of England as one kingdom. He added: “This is about encouraging economic regeneration of canal sides, bringing in day visitors and is something that will put Wednesfield on the map. Coun Bateman’s idea is being supported by the chairman of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Society, Brenda Ward, who will be meeting him in September. She will then raise the matter with the society’s committee and see how the plans can be supported. In May the Wyrley & Essington was a major element in the society’s explorer cruise with over 40 boats taking part.
with a 7-day maximum stay time limit. The Little Venice visitor moorings have changed from a 14-day maximum stay time along the length of the moorings to being half 14-day and half 7-day maximum stay time spots. Several other proposed changes, including a suggestion to reduce the permitted stay time at Kensal Green from its current 14 days, were discounted as unnecessary following feedback from local boaters as part of CRT’s pop-up meetings and survey sessions.
Specific problems
As a result of the pop-up consultations with boaters and open meetings with local land-based residents and other groups, the Trust has also had the chance to listen to the views of a wide cross-section of the community, which has highlighted some specific problems in certain areas.
The Stonebridge Lock (Lee Navigation) pop-up consultation in particular offered boaters the chance to highlight a range of problems in the locality of the lock, of which CRT was previously unaware. Fly tipping within the area, antisocial behaviour, and street prostitution around the area of the lock were all issues highlighted by local boaters as problems that make them feel potentially unsafe or vulnerable along this stretch of the navigation, something that CRT has pledged to tackle in partnership with the Metropolitan Police and local residents. Fly-tipping was also highlighted as a problem at various other London sites including the bin compounds intended for boater usage at both Paddington and Cowley, and both boaters and land-based residents who witness fly tipping are encouraged to report this to the Trust via email to
enquiries.london@canalrivertrust.org.uk The planned programme of improved maintenance on London’s waterways by the Trust is now well underway too, with tree cutting works undertaken on the River Stort, and dredging on the Slough Arm, lower Grand Union and the Hanwell Flight on the River Brent all helping to improve the usability of the navigations. Finally, both London-based boaters and those visiting the capital by boat are encouraged to get involved in one of the many volunteering and improvement workgroups and events that are held regularly across London to help to improve local areas and involve boaters in local community life. Litter picking, help with minor maintenance projects and many other events are held across London throughout the year; for more information, check out the ‘volunteering in London’ section of the CRT website.
South with Sergeant down the Grand Union Canal THE intrepid traveller and star of Strictly Come Dancing, John Sergeant (70) recently made a fleeting visit to Braunston Marina from where he set off on the Anglo Welsh 60ft narrowboat Golden Tarn, for the filming on the fifth of his eight-part British canal journeys being shot this summer. The series, which will also include the Llangollen and Caledonian Canals, will be screened weekly from January 2015 at peak time on ITV at 8pm following Coronation Street. This journey would take John Sergeant and his crew of two, plus camera crew, from Braunston to Brentford on the River Thames, a distance of 93 miles, 100 locks and two long tunnels. John Sergeant would cover the entire length of the original Grand Junction Canal, opened in 1805. Before departing John Sergeant was given a tour of Braunston Marina’s historic working dry docks, boat building shed and the rope shop by marina-owner Tim Coghlan, after which he signed the marina’s visitors’ book, adding the comment: “The best-working marina in Britain – many thanks.” The opening shots of the film will include the marina. Tim said: “We were delighted to have John Sergeant onboard at the marina for a couple of hours, when he spoke to camera
IN ITS Annual Review 2013-14 the Inland Waterways Association has pledged to keep up the pressure by continuing to lobby the waterways minister and other MPs to secure the future and funding for the Environment Agency’s navigations. The IWA says: “The failure of Government to transfer (the EA navigations) when the opportunity arose in 2013 is a major concern given the large funding cuts that the EA is now facing. “Transferring the EA navigations to the CRT with an appropriate funding
Service area
A CANALSIDE service area for boaters is being proposed on a farm on the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal at Coven Heath, near Wolverhampton, writes Bob Clarke. If the plans are approved, farm produce, boating supplies and fuel would be sold from the site. A picnic area and a boat servicing yard are also being proposed.
Book winners CONGRATULATIONS to five
lucky readers who each won a copy of the newly revised version of the book which triggered the revival of the canal network. Copies of Narrow Boat by Tom Rolt will go to: Helen Warr of Peterborough, Angela Sandhu of Hounslow, Nick Mauger of London, Garreth Rattew of Telford and Karen Peaurt of Northallerton.
Online vote
John Sergeant to camera as he set off from Braunston on his 93-mile, 100-lock canal journey to Brentford. PHOTO:TIM COGHLAN about his forthcoming journey at the historic marina entrance bridge and then set off for his first challenge – the six-lock Braunston Flight and the tunnel. “He told me he was passionate about the British canals, and had shown a great interest in all that we were doing. I am sure the series will be an excellent one and a great boost to the canals.”
Keeping up the pressure
By Bob Clarke
IN BRIEF
package is the best way forward and would be a further step towards the IWA’s long-held vision and aim for a National Waterways Conservancy which could offer a single licensing authority for all navigations.” The review says that in this financial year the IWA income was £821,000 of which £390,000 came from membership income and £117,000 from donations and legacies. However expenditure increased to £877,000 of which £440,000 was on campaigns and restoration. The number of work party volunteer days amounted to 1619 compared with 804 in 2012 and 390 in 2011.
An interesting point is that the average age range of canal camp volunteers shows that 27% were in the 18-25 and 64+ age groups. Leading the association’s restoration work has been the Waterway Recovery Group (WRG) and that saw 1390 volunteer days spent on canal restoration, 840 on vegetation clearance and forestry and 850 on canal improvement. Other highlights include 1624 volunteer days spent clearing Himalayan balsam in 2013 which is continuing through 2014. And 1205 volunteer hours have been spent to date on the IWA’s HS2 campaign.
IN OUR latest online poll at www.towpathtalk.co.uk we asked readers in which region they moor their boats. Not surprisingly 42% are Midlands based, 31% in the north of England and 20% in London, the Home Counties and eastern England. The remaining 7% are split between the South West or Wales and Scotland, Ireland or overseas. This month we are asking readers whether they have noticed more boat traffic this summer.
Rescue record RECENT warm weather has
prompted high numbers of boating enthusiasts to take to the water, resulting in a record-breaking season for rescues, reports River Canal Rescue. During June and July the breakdown and assistance firm undertook an average of 140 rescues per week (peaking at 190), 17% higher than its 2013 equivalent average of 122. www.rivercanalrescue.co.uk
After hours
THE Bridgewater Canal at Lymm in Cheshire is to be featured in a new Sky comedy, After Hours, writes Geoff Wood. The Royle Family’s Craig Cash is one of the stars of the series due to be screened later this year.
18 WASH CROSSING
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Seven miles from land
Les Heath achieves a trip of a lifetime across The Wash
SOME say it is on the wish list of many narrowboaters who have done just about everything. However, crossing The Wash in a boat designed for the Midlands waterways is not everyone’s cup of tea. It was certainly on my wish list for some years until a chat with a fellow boater in Paddington Basin last year set the wheels in motion for the dream to become reality.
Heading towards the Boston Stump at the start of the journey. PHOTOS: LES HEATH
As soon as the water level was the same on both sides of Boston Great Sluice tidal lock, the gates were opened.
Passing fishing boats as we leave Boston.
Entering the featureless River Nene.
By the time we made the crossing in June there were four boats lined up for the adventure which began at 5am on a beautiful morning in Boston on the River Witham. June is the ideal time to make the trip to take advantage of the long days for the 10-hour crossing. With everything in place our only concern was the weather and this turned out to be ideal. Any doubts and it would have been called off as has happened to narrowboats in the past. Our pilot, who months earlier had suggested the date and the time, arrived just after 5am and made a quick inspection of the boats before we gathered round for a briefing. Then it was off. As soon as the water level was the same on both sides of Boston Great Sluice tidal lock the gates were opened and the flotilla set off towards the sea past an array of colourful fishing boats moored on the quay. The pilot, Daryl Hill, who knows the waters like the back of his hand, chose to travel on narrowboat Martha, while my own boat Country Rose, together with The Maple Knot and Hector followed closely behind.
Sandbanks and mudflats
Heading straight towards the rising sun we were soon clear of the long stretch of water known as The Haven which links Boston to The Wash. A clearly marked channel heading north east, which is used by sea-going ships en route to Boston, took us further out in the direction of the North Sea. An RAF bombing range in the south west corner of The Wash, together with vast expanses of sandbanks and mudflats were the two reasons why we’re unable to take a more direct route to our destination of Wisbech on the River Nene. So further out to sea we went with the land slowly disappearing behind us. Daryl had checked the weather forecast prior to our departure and was satisfied that narrowboats could be that far from land and that we could make a successful crossing. Spotting a cargo ship in front of us on the horizon caused some excitement and really brought it home that we really were at sea, albeit a calm sea. We did not realise that the vessel was at anchor and
Heading down The Haven towards The Wash.
that a couple of hours later we would be passing under her bow on the way to the Nene. A mile or two before we reached the ship we realised for the first time that we were completely out of sight of land. Hardly surprising, therefore, to see looks of astonishment on the faces of coaster’s crewmen on the bridge. The sight of four narrowboats passing on their starboard side must have been just as much a talking point for them as it was for us. As the coaster became smaller behind us Daryl headed towards a small buoy to which he attached Martha and we rafted up together to wait for the tide. One of the highlights for narrowboats crossing The Wash is to ‘dry out’ on the sand and have a barbecue or game of cricket while waiting for the incoming tide. Unfortunately this did not happen in our case. While waiting for our opportunity to ‘go ashore’ the wind and waves began to increase and Daryl, who has spent more than 20 years taking narrowboats over The Wash, decided it was time to move. Also, there were so many seals basking on the sands where we should have landed that it was felt right not to disturb them. Following the twisting channel towards the mouth of the Nene it was difficult to imagine that huge cargo ships take this narrow route to wharves as far inland as Sutton Bridge and Wisbech. As the sea slowly became a river and the waves subsided dozens of seals entertained us as, one by one, they slid down the steep muddy banks into the water.
Feelings of elation
Passing what appeared to be a giant ship unloading cargo at Sutton Bridge we began the last featureless miles of the journey along the Nene to the yacht haven at Wisbech where excellent facilities were available. The whole adventure took around 10 hours to cover a distance of 38 miles, 20 of which were on open water. Our furthest point from land was seven miles – an awesome fact which justified our collective apprehension at the beginning of the day. Our feelings of elation on completing the trip were difficult to describe. All four crews were still on a high as we discussed the day’s events. Messages began coming in from our boating friends all over the country. Many were envious of our achievement and wished they had been with us while others insisted that there was no way they would have made the journey and that we must have been crazy. However, we all agreed that it was an amazing trip of a lifetime. Leaving salt water behind the next day at the Dog in the Doublet tidal lock we went our different ways on the inland waterways and, awash with pride, were determined to encourage others to do The Wash.
Excitement for us and bewilderment for the crew of this foreign cargo ship.
All four boats rafted up waiting for the tide to turn.
Passing beneath Sutton Bridge.
Two of the four narrowboats safely moored at Wisbech Yacht Haven.
Back on non-tidal waters as the Dog in the Doublet lock closes behind us.
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Probe into CRT should be deep and meaningful
THE announcement that the All Party Parliamentary Waterways Group will be leading an inquiry into the Canal & River Trust to evaluate progress thus far and its future plans has been widely welcomed. I just hope the inquiry will not be conned by sweet talk from certain CRT individuals and that the inquiry team will dig deep with searching questions. How I wish I was a member of that team. I was glad to learn that the inquiry chairman will be Sir Tony Baldry MP, a former and most effective Waterways Minister and someone who will not be messed around. One thing the Inland Waterways Association will rightly home in on – and I hope the CRT will back it – is the enormous foul-up by Defra in not backing the transfer of the Environment Agency Navigations when the CRT was founded. As a result EA navigation users are facing steep rises in licence costs while the agency itself is cutting costs which will impact on the future wellbeing of the navigations. Furthermore it is doubtful if the CRT will ever reach its full potential without those navigations – an opinion frequently expressed by the IWA. Apart from the future of the EA navigations forming one of the subjects to be examined, other topics to be examined will include funding (including the use of volunteers), CRT’s response to recent flooding, mooring problems and CRT’s relationship with the wider waterways community. It is encouraging that a wide spread of witnesses including some heavyweights such as the Waterways Minister Dan Rogerson (it will be interesting to hear how much he has picked up in his short time as Minister, Tony Hales and Richard Parry (CRT), and Paul Leinster (EA chief executive). It will be interesting to hear his views on why the Agency just ignored the foundation of the CRT. And as one witness will be the IWA’s national chairman, Les Etheridge, I and doubtless many others will be looking to him to forcefully promote the expertise of the IWA which has steadfastly maintained its belief in the future of the waterways.
Is this the thin end of the wedge?
The announcement that the EA is looking to work in partnership with local and national development bodies to continue the regeneration of Lydney Docks and develop a self-sufficient facility frankly fills me with more than a little suspicion. The EA is bleating that ‘as a publicly funded body’ it feels unable to develop the docks as a commercial operation and is looking to transfer its interest in the site to a suitable person or body who will take on the statutory responsibility for maintaining and developing the docks. This is just the sort of thing that the CRT could have sorted out
had Defra (and the EA) not been so stupid as not to transfer the waters to the CRT. I hope this is something that the IWA chairman Les Etheridge will seize on when giving evidence to the Parliamentary Group inquiry. But if, as now seems likely, the docks finish up in private ownership what guarantee is there that the historic complex will not be turned into some hideous theme park. Is this not the thin end of the wedge?
CONTINUING our light-hearted look at life on the cut. Ken Walsh of nb Pumpkin snapped this on a recent trip on the Manchester Ship Canal from Salford Quays to the Pier Head, Liverpool, as the Mersey ferry slowly descended Mode Wheel locks.
Another contribution spotted at the Crick Boat Show by Harry Arnold of Waterway Images.
Three years on...
With the CRT now in its third year, what has been the users’ perception of the trust’s performance thus far? Users (and waterway business people) I have spoken to are mainly of the view that nothing of real note has changed from the BW days which is completely contrary to the fine PR words being churned out from Milton Keynes. I can but hope that chief executive Richard Parry who deserves the highest praise for his immense travelling round the system has come across the less than complimentary words which have been uttered by many enthusiasts on the impact the CRT hasn’t made. I was told by one CRT senior figure that there were several things in the pipeline but which are still under wraps. That being the case one can understand when the trust is described is just as secretive as was BW and questions arise. Certainly there have been instances where consultations haven’t taken place or have merely received lip service. Equally it can be understood when waterway veterans go on record describing the trust as ‘BW Mk 4’. It’s no use the trustees, executives or managers jumping up and down. But several of them cannot see that the problem is one of their own making. The old BW arrogance still exists in some parts. So is the contempt for boaters held by some senior CRT staff – including one or two supervisory staff on the bank – which is really worrying. And what about the much vaunted Waterway Partnerships? One or two seem to be getting their acts together but the majority are becoming regarded by users as talking shops manned by professional committee types. In fairness it must be stated that the partnerships are purely advisory. Fair enough but when you get a waterway manager classing anything he regards as contentious, he rules it as operational and freezes the partnership out. The trust has still a long way to go to receive total respect from users.
Isn’t this taking health and safety too far?
Albert, where did the view go?
Jo and Stuart Wooldridge of wemoveanynarrowboat.com were amused by this sign at Trent Lock on the River Trent.
If you have a suitable photo or anecdote we can share with our readers, please send it to Towpath Talk, PO Box 43, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR or email: editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk And don’t forget you can also follow us on Twitter @towpathtalk and on Facebook
Do you agree or disagree with Stillwater’s comments? Send your views to Talkback (see previous page)
Who says the Canal & River Trust doesn’t have a sense of humour!
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