Our Influence

Over the 35 years of the club’s existence, we have represented our members concerns on a number of issues, often working with other groups to lobby and promote beneficial change.

Most recently we have encouraged our members to support the “Fund Britain’s Waterways” campaign, and have changed our constitution to allow the club to formally support it.

We remain deeply concerned about the future of some of our disconnected waterways that have benefitted from restoration work at huge public expense, but now face the prospect of returning to dereliction. Examples are the Neath and Tennant canal, the Bridgwater and Taunton canal, the Grantham canal, but there are, unfortunately, many others across the UK.

In 2022 we, with others, put pressure on Calor Gas to cancel proposals to withdraw the small propane and butane cylinders that many campers, caravaners and boaters rely on. These have now been re-introduced, albeit with a £10 increase in price.

In 2020 and 2021 we represented our members concerns over gas fuelled fridges with the Boat Safety Scheme, resulting in an arrangement that has allowed boat owners to retain their gas fridges, and postpone upgrading to new, expensive, electric fridges to a time of their choosing

In 2020 club members on Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal joined the campaign to ensure that developers Taylor Wimpy restored navigation to the southern end of the canal, after demolishing a bridge into the canal bed, and not removing the rubble.

Navigation has now been restored, and, better still, the interest generated by this campaign has produced a team of volunteers that regularly work to improve the stretch of canal. The local council, seeing this evidence of local interest, now have a plan to work towards extending the navigation to Cwmbran town centre.

Many more boats now use this section of canal, including hire boaters who are encouraged to do so by the hire boat companies. (photos courtesy of Mark Sullivan) - Bridge 46 to Five Locks Canal Group Facebook group

In 2018 Contractors, working to build the longest single span bridge in Somerset, effectively closed, without due notice, Crossways Bridge on the Bridgwater and Taunton canal. This prevented lawful access by boat to Bridgwater docks, and cut short a planned club cruise. Our club members subsequently met with the contractors who agreed to make a donation, (as compensation), to the Inland Waterways Association. The bridge has now been replaced with a modern structure, and club members were able to join others to celebrate its opening with “Sqibbers”, a type of firework peculiar to Bridgwater.

In the late 1990s we worked with what was British Waterways, (now CRT), to introduce the Explorer Licence giving use of the canals for a day or several days at a time up to a maximum of 30 days.

Throughout our 35 years, our presence at Canal Festivals on the Huddersfield, Chesterfield, Wilts and Berks, Stroudwater, Lancaster, Grand Western, Mon and Brec, Montgomery, Neath and Tennant, Wey and Arun, and Ashby canals has helped celebrate the achievements of restoration groups and gain support for further work.