Anglian Cuttings No. 118

ANGLIAN CUTTINGS

A SUMMERâ€&#x;S DAY AT REEDHAM FERRY

Ipswich Branch Newsletter Winter 2011 No. 118 The IWA may not agree with the opinions expressed in this publication. They are, however, published as a matter of interest to our members and readers.

Nothing printed can be construed as policy or an official announcement unless stated.

The IWA accepts no liability for any matter in this publication.

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IWA IPSWICH BRANCH YOUR COMMITTEE Chairman Chard Wadley chairman.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Secretary & Anglia Cuttings Editor Charles Stride secretary.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk editor.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Treasurer Spencer Greystrong treasurer.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Membership Clive Saville membership.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Publicity Brian Holt pro.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Social Secretary Diana Holt socialsec.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk River Gipping Trust Lewis Tyler RGTRep.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk River Stour Trust Sue Brown

RSTRep.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Pickerel Project Brian Cornell

pickerelrep.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk Officer Gerry Crease officer01.ipswichbranch@waterways.org.uk

*************************** IWA Ipswich - http://www.waterways.org.uk/regions_branches/eastern/ Ipswich/ipswich

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EDITOR’S PONDERINGS

C H STRIDE

2011 is already here, but let me take this opportunity to wish you „All the Best‟ for the New Year. Clearly it is going to be a challenging one, and effects will be felt across our Waterways, but hopefully a sound foundation for the future will be laid.

The front piece picture will, I hope, remind us of warmer and brighter days ahead. projects involved with the Stour.

In view of their importance the latest details of the future of BW and the funding available to the network are to be found on pages 12 & 13. We will all be watching with interest as 2011 continues.

Both Trusts and indeed the ongoing projects involving the North Walsham & Dilham Canal (Edition 117) and the Aylsham Navigation (page 11) will all be very dependant on the ongoing availability of active volunteers. So please consider whether you would like to be involved and get in touch with the organisers concerned.

In the meantime many thanks to all who are already helping.

Locally we have also seen some changes.

Very regretfully the River Gipping Trust lost their Chairman, Gordon Paton, (page 5) who had done much to assist the Trust in its early days. He will be missed.

Brian Annis (page 6) has agreed to become the Chairman and we welcome him and wish him well.

Finally, as Spring approaches, what are you doing on the first May Bank Holiday?

The IWA National Campaign Rally is close to us on the Nene at Northampton and the Canalway Cavalcade takes place at Little Venice in London with free entry.

Why not have a day out and visit one of them?

Charles Stride

The River Stour Trust also has a new Council Chairman (page 9) Andrew Richardson and we welcome him and also wish him well as he takes on the challenges of the continuing restoration

MEMBERSHIP UPDATE We gladly welcome all our new members From Norfolk: Ms S Cunningham; Mr T Rawlings: Mr G Summers From Suffolk: Mr M Godfrey & Miss F Sharratt; Mr & Mrs R Steiner; Mr & Mrs W Fuller; Mr & Mrs I & L Petchey; Mr M Barlow; Mr & Mrs K & B Goffin From Essex: Mr & Mrs G & C Chapman; Mr J Lunn; Ms S Ashman At the end of November we had 521 Members.

May I take this opportunity to wish all our Members a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year, hope that you all enjoyed Christmas too.

Clive Saville 3

CHAIRMANS’ JOTTINGS I will start by wishing you a very Happy New Year and to say I hope you had a good Christmas.

We are now halfway through our winter programme (and what a winter it has been so far). The meetings have been really enjoyable with interesting speakers and I want to thank you all for your support at these meetings especially with this exceptionally cold winter.

It is very difficult to find interesting speakers these days and I would like to thank Diana and Brian Holt for all their efforts. I am sure they will not mind me saying that if anyone has any thoughts on speakers then please get in touch with our social secretary Diana.

permission from the owner at Pipps Ford to repair damage to the lock and bridge so we will have a busy 2011. See Martin‟s report on Baylham in this edition.

Please note that the annual dinner has been moved to March in hope that it is a little warmer. It is to be lunch time instead of in the evening which will make travelling home easier, as it will be daylight, so please support this social gathering.

On a more depressing note you may have seen that BW is hitting the boaters once again by increasing the licence fee by 5.1% from April 2011. This follows on from the changes to regulations governing the use of „red diesel‟ from 1 January 2011 which is an EU directive.

I am pleased to say that the branch is going from strength to strength and the membership has grown to over 500 members, so a big thank you to all our members for supporting the branch.

Thank you also to all the volunteers who enthusiastically spend Saturdays and Wednesdays at the lock. We have missed a few work parties during the real wintery weather before Christmas but hopefully we will be back on site by the time you read this newsletter. We are also hoping to do some scrub clearance back at Bosmere Lock and we now have

Enough of being a grumpy old man, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my committee for their hard work and dedication to the branch over 2010.

Chard Wadley.

WINTER ON THE CUT 2010 4

OUR REGION CHAIRMAN REPORTS or just possibly not at all.

BW/New Waterway Charity.

Obviously we want it in, it makes our long cherished dream of a single unified licence virtually impossible without EA‟s inclusion.

(See Page 13) At the December Trustees meeting a goodly amount of time was spent on this matter, briefly the Trustees agreed that whatever happens this must be a completely new body.

At present no other navigation Authorities would be included but that could well change dependent on the legislation.

It was considered unacceptable for BW‟s existing structure and management to simply „change hats‟ and continue as before.

Welches Dam Lock,

There is still much which is uncertain and we discussed the role that IWA could best play in the future with regards to our relations with the NWC. We settled on the phrase “ The critical friend”, in other words we want this to succeed, we would like to have good relations with them but not be afraid to voice hard truths or unpalatable opinions if we have to.

The current state of affairs is that the Trustees have agreed to seek legal advice from solicitors with specialist knowledge of Inland Waterways, Nigel Long has been asked to research the field and suggest a candidate to Paul Roper.

It was not clear whether the EA would be included in the NWC from its inception, or would be brought in later,

I believe he has done that and the matter is moving forward albeit slowly.

Alastair Chambers

GORDON PATON It is with deep regret that we have to advise of the death of Gordon Paton, The River Gipping Trust Chairman. In 2009 Gordon was diagnosed with motor neurone disease but he fought hard not to let it hold him back, including undertaking an incredible 192 mile coast to coast walk earlier last year which raised £10,000 to help fight this disease. A Past Mayor (3 times) of Stowmarket, and a Vice-chairman of Mid Suffolk, he played an active role as Trust Chairman.

Our sincere condolences go to his wife Eve, his children and Grandchildren.

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Compliments of the Season

Anglia. He represented Needham Chalks on trade federation matters and was chairman of the Agricultural Lime Producers for many years. For his work in this field of agriculture he was awarded an OBE in 1982. He continues to work in this area of agriculture, being retained as a consultant by the Agricultural Lime Association and is the UK representative on the European Committee responsible for the harmonisation of the specifications of agricultural lime fertilisers.

Brian is a Rotarian, a member of the Stowmarket Club and has just completed his second term as President. He sings with the local church choir and has been a member of Woodbridge Choral Society for over 50 years. He has been a Needham Market Town Councillor since 1972 and is the Chairman of the local Community Centre.

In 1962 he married Jean who he first met when he went to work at Stradbroke.

They have lived in Needham Market for over 45 years and have 2 daughters and 5 grandchildren.

Lewis Tyler

We would like to welcome our new Trust Chairman (Designate)

Brian Annis.

Brian was born in Ipswich only son of Jack and Gladys Annis. His father was an engineer and a director of Cocksedge and Company. Brian attended Northgate Gra mmar schoo l, leaving in 1952 to complete a years practical farming on a mixed farm in Stradbroke. During his term of National Service in the Royal Air Force he served as an airframe fitter at RAF Kabrit in the Canal Zone and at RAF Nicosia in Cyprus. On leaving the Air Force he studied for his National Diploma in Agriculture at Writtle Agricultural College near Chelmsford. On leaving college in 1957 he was employed as assistant Farm Manager on the Bawdsey Estate of Sir Raymond Quilter, farming the 2500 acres of Sutton Hall Farms. The Estate was broken up following the death of Sir Raymond and in 1960 Brian went to work for Needham Chalks Limited.

He retired in the year 2000 having completed 40 years with the company and been responsible as Production Director for agricultural and industrial chalk products from five quarries in East 6

River Gipping Trust AGM 13th May 2011 at Needham Market - Ben Gummer, MP for Ipswich will be attending - 7.30 pm - all welcome

RESTORATION REPORT below the lower stop planks to expose the damaged brickwork in the retaining wall below the bridge, but high water levels have so far prevented us from carrying out this operation.

Much progress has been achieved during the recent months.

Following the work on re-building the east wall and re-profiling the earth bank behind the wall in July, the rest of the summer has been spent in re-bedding the coping stones on the East wall and in work on the upstream cill at Baylham Lock

While a number of volunteers were away on the Chairmanâ€&#x;s cruise, we took the opportunity for a smaller group to replace the broken bench at Hawks Mill with a new timber version.

The coping stones are now fully in place, including the creation of a cut out to allow for a ladder and the casting of an area of concrete to bring the upper surface of one stone to a level.

Planning is underway for a winter work programme to include re-visiting Bosmere and some minor work at Pipps Ford. However the Countryside Warden for Bosmere is unable to gain access to a chipper until later in the year and the Environment Agency have confirmed they require a full application to cover the works at Pipps Ford. An application is in hand for this.

Work then moved to re-building lost brickwork form the upper cill and removing a rotten wooden member from the gate sub-frame. After consideration, it was decided not to replace the timber at this stage, but leave this until we are ready to fit gates, to ensure that any timber can be permanently submerged.

Having completed the brickwork to this position we have now moved to concentrate in the area below the bridge where trees had been cleared earlier in the year and exposed a brick surface which may have been a wharf area for the mill.

The retaining wall at the rear of this area was in poor condition. Loose brickwork has been removed, reducing the height of the wall by 18 inches, the bricks retained on site pending rebuild. We are currently cleaning these bricks and preparing for the rebuild of the wall.

I have also written to the owners of Badley lock, to offer the Trusts services in carrying out a survey and subsequent restoration work, but to date have not had a reply.

Martin Bird

We have prepared to pump out the area 7

River Stour Trust Restoring and conserving the River Stour Navigation

TAKING THE WATERS (Part 3) The Abberton Scheme

Fifteen years ago E&SW began investigating ways of meeting future needs. They accelerated leakage control and the promotion of metering and water efficiency; they considered over 250 potential sites for new reservoirs and looked at other new water resource options including importing icebergs and desalination before choosing, as the most appropriate solution The Abberton Scheme

Although no construction work is necessary at Denver in order to increase the volume of water to be transferred, the existing EOETS does not have the pumping capacity to transfer the maximum daily quantity, so additional pumps must be installed at Kennett. Also a new 30 million gallons per day pipeline must be constructed alongside the Stour from Kirtling Green to Wixoe, where the additional water will be put into the river.

This pipeline is needed as there is no capacity in the upper Stour to accommodate the higher rates of transfer. An additional pumping station will be built near Wormingford where water will be abstracted from the Stour and transferred via a second new pipeline to Abberton Reservoir.

Work on the pipeline construction will begin in January 2011.

When EOETS is not operating, the Wormingford-Abberton pipeline and increased storage capacity in the reservoir will enable E&SW to take more water from the Stour when it is plentiful, usually during the winter.

Water is only transferred from Denver to Essex via EOETS when all these conditions are met:

This scheme involves enlarging the capacity of Abberton Reservoir by raising the main part of the reservoir by 10 feet, giving 58% more storage.

Abberton Reservoir is of international importance for waterfowl, so the scheme has been designed to create and improve habitats for birds and other wildlife, and enhance the landscape.

Construction work is due to begin in January 2010.

To fill the enlarged reservoir, the licence for abstraction at Denver will be varied to make additional water available with least detriment to nature conservation sites. In wet years E&SW may have no requirement for this water as there is enough natural water in the Stour and other rivers to fill Abberton and Hanningfield Reservoirs, while in a year of average rainfall about 7% is transferred, and up to 35% in dry years.

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The

level

of

Abberton

and/or

Hanningfield Reservoirs falls below a specified level - There is not enough natural flow in the River Stour or River Pant/Blackwater to supply the reservoirs - The minimum specified volume of water is being released through Denver to the sea.

By the end of one year‟s dry summer the need for the scheme was plain to see. In September S2C participants encountered sections of river where the water was too shallow to float a canoe, and our volunteers working at Stratford Lock

found their raft grounding before reaching the bank. They also noticed E&SW had to stop pumping water from the river when the level fell although the reservoirs at Abberton and Hanningfield were low. Insufficient water at Denver meant EOETS could not be used. Clearly this scheme is vital to maintain supplies for the future.

I wish to thank E&SW for their help in the writing of this article.

You can find out more about the Abberton Scheme on E&SW‟s website: www.eswater.co.uk/abberton Sue Brown

Andrew Richardson new Chairman of the River Stour Trust I was born in Sudbury and grew up near to the Stour at Great Cornard. My earliest exposure to the river was apparently being wheeled on the frozen river in my pram during the winter of 1962. The first contact with the river I can remember was rowing a mirror dinghy down the Stour as a teenager in the mid 70‟s not an easy feat at that time.

I first came into contact with the River Stour Trust seven years ago when I took part in Sudbury to the Sea (S2C) , sensing my enthusiasm for the event I was quickly collared to help run future events and have been involved in organising the last six.

I joined the RST council five years ago, I think that it‟s fair to say the experience of the last few years on council has been at times very challenging. The RST has been through a lot of changes and is still emerging from that process, key members of council have found the whole thing understandably exhausting and have chosen to leave council and spend time on other projects within the trust. It is against this background that I became Chairman of council in October. Many parts of the trust are functioning well, we have a sound financial situation, good administration and a pool of dedicated members.

Looking forwards there are a number of interesting projects for the Trust to work on.

Our principal focus remains the restoration of Stratford St Mary Lock to full working order but we also have the exciting prospect of the completion of the rebuild of the River Stour lighter „John Constable‟ in the next two years. Both these challenges will require the input of enthusiastic volunteers, and one of the tasks facing the management of the trust is recruiting new members. I‟m very conscious of the history of the RST particularly it‟s achievements over the last 40 years. I see my role as Chairman as encouraging volunteers with a can do and all inclusive attitude.

Continued Page 10.

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THE WHERRYMAN‟S WAY A Guide to Norfolk‟s Long Distance Footpath

By Steve Silk Steve Silk is an assistant editor with BBC based in Norwich, working on programs such as Look East and Election 2010. He lives on Loddon, which is situated mid way between Norwich and Gt. Yarmouth on the Wherryman‟s Way.

selection of photographs both modern and archive taken along the route, including some aerial shots by Mike Page.

Steve talks of the history of the villages he passes through and the way they have changed over the years, talking to the villagers to record their memories from their childhood days. He also talks of some of the characters that used to live there including people like Billy Bluelight who used to race the boats from Bramerton to Norwich on foot and Old Scientific, a Wildfowler who made his living on Rockland Broad. But this is not just about the history of the area, Steve also talks to the people who are making their living from the area today, such as David Archer, the owner of Reedham Ferry and Mike Sparks who is one of the skippers of the Wherry Albion.

The Wherryman‟s Way was created in 2005 and consists of a series of existing connected footpaths, bridleways and lanes running from the railway station at Norwich to the railway station at Great Yarmouth, roughly following the route of the river Yare for some 35 miles.

As well as the main walk there are also 12 circular walks of anything between 1 and 7 ½ miles long running off the Wherryman‟s Way, with precise instruction on how to find them and navigate round them, with of course a description of what you will see on the way.

The book is 13 chapters long, each chapter covering a section of the walk starting in Norwich and ending in Great Yarmouth.

There is a very good

Halsgrove Publishing. 144pp, 32 b&w 113 colour illustrations 13 maps ISBN 978- 1-84114-852-6 £14.99

********************************************************************** Continued from Page 9 Obviously the board of trustees must ensure we comply with legislative requirements and keep a firm hand on the finances, but at the end of the day the RST is there for members and supporters to enjoy their time on this beautiful river. I think I‟ve got a good team around me to achieve this, although I‟m always hopeful that a few new members will come along, and that more might choose to serve on council.

Andrew Richardson 10

Aylsham Navigation 100th ANNIVERSARY The vision is to raise the profile of our beautiful river, to identify and protect its history and wildlife in such a way that it remains available for the generations that follow to enjoy This community project plans to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the closure of the Aylsham Navigation.

The waterway closed in August 1912 after heavy floods washed out the 5 locks between the current head of navigation on the River Bure (part of the Broads) at Coltishall and the town of Aylsham. The waterway had been in existence since 1779. The Act authorising its construction (George 111 c.37) received royal assent on 7th April 1773.

such as coal and building materials carried upstream and 1 shilling and 6 pence (old money) for agricultural produce downstream.

The waterway served the communities of Coltishall, Horstead, Hautbois, Buxton, Oxnead, Brampton, Burgh and Aylsham itself. Along its banks were a number of staithes (local term for dock or landing stage) and Mills. The locks at Coltishall, Buxton, Oxnead, Burgh and Aylsham were mostly designed to get around preexisting Mill streams. The purpose of the waterway was mostly the transport of agricultural produce away from the area but return loads were varied from coal to state of the art (for the time) consumer goods. The tonnage rates varied depending on the commodity but broadly speaking was 1 shilling per ton for goods

When the flood came on August 26th 1912 all of the locks and some of the bridges (including the one between Coltishall and Horstead) were washed out. The navigation was already in decline as the coming of the railways in the 1880's had dramatically cut the trade.

After the flood the Navigation was never re-opened. Trading wherries caught upstream were abandoned with the exception of the Zulu which was manhauled around the obstructions to gain her freedom.

The waterway was formally abandoned in November 1928.

The Navigation utilised the River Bure for most of its 9.5 miles from Coltishall but some canal cuts were put in place to facilitate ease of navigation. The final cut in to Aylsham itself was filled in during the 1970's and the site of Aylsham Staithe is now a housing development (called The Staithe).

THE PROJECT The Project plans to identify and record what remains of the history of the navigation and also the wildlife of this spectacular river. It also plans to hold a commemoration of the navigation in some form as close to 100 years from the date as possible. More details will be published as they become known. We also plan to identify and describe walks that will enable others to responsibly (and with respect to land owners) enjoy the river, it's history, scenery and wildlife. For more information and to contact us see http://www.eastinvolve.net/aylsham-navigation 11

New Waterway Charity Update December 2010 The Defra consultation on the principles of British Waterways becoming a charitable body is expected early in 2011 and the intelligence is that it is planned for release in about the middle of February 2011. It is expected to cover all the major issues, such as structure, governance and finance. The period for comments to be made is likely to be 12 weeks.

The legislative authorisation for the transfer of British Waterways responsibilities and obligations to a charity will be conveyed by the provisions of the Public Bodies Bill.

This is an enabling Bill which provides for the technical changes to be made by an order. The Government is required by law to consult on secondary legislation and that is expected later in 2011.

The Public Bodies Bill is currently going through its Parliamentary scrutiny. The enabling powers are so wide ranging that they have been subject to critical debate in the Billâ€&#x;s House of Lords stages. A concession made by Government is that orders under the Bill will be subject to the super-affirmative resolution procedure. This procedure was introduced by the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006. It is the most demanding from of Parliamentary scrutiny of secondary legislation. It makes orders subject to resolution by either House of Parliament (Lords and Commons) and the consideration of a Committee of either House charged with reporting on the order.

No decision has yet been made on whether the charity should also be responsible for the Environment Agency navigations. The consultation is likely to offer a preferred option for comment by consultees. It is known that the charity will not include the British Waterways navigations in Scotland. IWA fully accepts the decision of the Scottish Executive. However, IWA would support any future option for British Waterways Scotland which encourages co-operation on navigational issues for Great Britain so that the waterways currently managed across Britain by British Waterways maintain consistency for users.

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WATERWAYS FUNDING ANNOUNCED Defra has today (20 December 2010) announced that its grant to British Waterways next year will be £41.5m. This is a reduction of £9.8m (or 19%) from the 2010/11 baseline grant of £51.3m. Given that Government funding makes up approximately half of the net spend on the waterways, this will translate into an effective cut of resource available of about 12% in 2011/12.

The settlement represents the last annual grant to British Waterways in England and Wales before a longer term contract comes into place in April 2012 when the canals, rivers and docks in its care are expected to be transferred into a new charity.

Defra has also announced indicative funding from 2012/13 to 2014/15 will be an annual £39m, with a long-term commitment that a funding contract running up to at least 2022/23 will not fall below this level.

British Waterways‟ chairman, Tony Hales, commented: “In the current climate it would be unrealistic to expect British Waterways to be exempt from cuts in public spending and we will have to make difficult decisions to ensure the continued maintenance of the historic canals and rivers in our care.

The Government‟s

commitment to the first ever long-term public funding settlement for the waterways is, however, a good step forward and I have been heartened by ministers' continued commitment to this „Big Society‟ flagship.

“Security of funding is fundamental to achieving the Government‟s objective of establishing a new „national trust‟ for the waterways. The challenge now is to develop a funding plan which gives confidence to the incoming trustees of the new charity and retains the support of waterway stakeholders. I firmly believe this can be achieved and, while we would all have hoped for a larger settlement, we are one step closer to turning the long-held vision of a waterways charity into reality.”

For further media enquiries: Ed Fox – 020 7985 7226, 07801 049829, edward.fox@britishwaterways.co.uk Jonathan Ludford – 020 7985 7275, 07747 897783, jonathan.ludford@britishwaterways.co.uk 13

EASTERN REGION ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting of the Eastern Region of the Inland Waterways Association will be held on Wednesday 16 th March 2011 at the Peterborough and District Indoor Bowls Centre, Burton Street, Peterborough at 7.30 p.m.

AGENDA 1. Apologies 2. Approval of the Minutes of the AGM held on 18 th March 2010 3. Matters Arising from those Minutes 4. Chairmanâ€&#x;s Report 5. Election of Committee Members (see notes below) Notes: [following the amendment of Region Byelaws which came into force on 14/3/09] The Chairman of the Region is elected in a separate ballot and the Chairmen of each of the branches within the Region are members of the Region committee ex officio. This is an election for the remaining members of the Region committee.

There is no limit to the number of members of that committee The period of office of the following elected members of the committee comes to an end at the 2011 AGM namely, Derek Bradley and Roger Sexton. Both are eligible to stand for re-election.

It is no longer necessary for those who wish to be elected to the committee to be nominated and seconded but all who wish to stand must agree to do so.

Consents from members of the Region who wish to stand for election at the AGM 2011 must be deposited with the Region Secretary [Nigel Long 7 Georgian Court, Peterborough PE3 6AF or by email at nhlong@supanet.com] before the start of the Annual General Meeting CONSENT FORM I agree to stand for election to the Eastern Region committee at the 2011 Annual General Meeting. I am a member of Eastern Region (Sign) -----------------------------

Print Name ------------------------

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1st

DATES for your DIARY

2nd

BRANCH MEETINGS & EVENTS Branch Meetings held at the Community Centre, School St., Needham Market At 7.30, unless otherwise stated.

FRIDAY 14TH JANUARY Members Evening FRIDAY 11TH FEBRUARY Annual General Meeting & Talk FRIDAY 11TH MARCH Annual Lunch—Compasses Holbrook.

This year the dinner has been moved to March in the hope that the weather will have improved from the depths of winter. Also the meal will be at lunch time on the Friday to avoid members having to travel after dark. Tickets must be booked by the 11 February with Chard Wadley.

OTHER DATES WEDNESDAY 16TH MARCH - 7.30 Peterborough IWA Eastern Region AGM See Notice Page 14 SATURDAY 30TH APRIL—MONDAY 2ND MAY IWA National Campaign Rally River Nene Northampton EACH SUNDAY FROM 24TH APRIL - 11am—4pm Sudbury Quay & Flatford River Stour Trust Boat Trips SATURDAY 30TH APRIL—MONDAY 2ND MAY Canalway Cavalcade Little Venice London FRIDAY 13TH MAY - 7.30 Community Centre, Needham Market River Gipping Trust AGM MONDAY 30TH MAY - 11am—4pm The Quay Sudbury River Stour Trust „Teddy Bear Boat Rides‟ FRIDAY 29TH JULY—SUNDAY 31ST JULY 2011 IWA National Festival—Burton-on-Trent Note Change—NOT The August Bank Holiday.

WORKING PARTY DATES Working Parties are held by the River Gipping Trust at Baylham Lock from 0900 to 1700 every Wednesday and on the first Saturday of each month, unless that Saturday is a Bank Holiday in which case it will then be held on the second Saturday of that month.

For further information and to confirm dates contact Martin Bird Tel: 01394 380765 Email: thebirds99@btinternet.com 15

DISCOVER CONSTABLE‟S RIVER The River Stour Trust‟s boat trips are available from Easter Sunday 24th April 2011 until at least the end of October 2011.

We offer scheduled boat trips every Sunday from 11am at Sudbury and Flatford. There is no pre-booking for the half -hour return trips between Sudbury and Great Cornard or Flatford and Fen Bridge. The last non-landing cruise usually departs at 4.30pm..

We also offer pre-booked lunch cruises and private charters to riverside venues at Flatford and Sudbury. Further details about our boat trips are available from our website at www. riverstourtrust.org. For bookings and enquiries, please telephone 0844 800 5015 for Sudbury or 0844 800 5017 for Flatford.

Our volunteers also run our Riverside Tea Room at the Granary, Quay Lane, Sudbury on Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays (11.00am-5.00pm) on Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays (11.00am-5.00pm). We serve hot and cold drinks, Delicious homemade cake and freshly made light lunches with specials chosen by the volunteers on duty that day. All general enquiries – please call 01787 313199 or visit www. riverstourtrust.org.

MONDAY 30TH MAY TEDDY BEAR BOAT RIDES Children with their Teddies go FREE 11am - 4pm USEFUL WEBSITES IWA Head Office - http://www.waterways.org.uk Waterway Recovery Group - http://www.wrg.org.uk Save Our System - http://www.SOS2010.org.uk River Gipping Trust - http://rivergippingtrust.org.uk River Stour Trust - http://www.riverstourtrust.org East Anglian Waterways Association –http://www.eawa.co.uk IWA Peterborough Branch - http://www.iwapeterborough.org.uk The Broads Society - http://www.broads-society.org.uk The Australian Canal Society - http://www.auscanal.org.au/ British Waterways/Waterscape - http://www.waterscape.com Waterways Trust - http://www.thewaterwaystrust.org.uk DEFRA Dept. for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs - http://www.defra.gov.uk The Inland Waterways Association is a non-profit distribution company limited by guarantee.

Registered Office; Island House, Moor Road, Chesham, Buckinghamshire. HP5 1WA Tel: 01494 783453 Web: www.waterways.org.uk Registered in England No. 612245. Registered as a Charity No. 212342

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