Last week we launched a crowdfunding campaign asking for donations towards essential restoration and conservation work at Tardebigge Top Lock and we’d love your help in sharing the message far and wide.
Built in 1815, we want the public to help repair and restore the Grade II Listed Tardebigge Top Lock, part of the longest flight of locks in the UK, after one of its historic brick-built walls bowed and was at risk of collapse.
The restoration of the lock is needed to ensure this important piece of canal heritage is protected and for the continued safe passage of boats as well as for the thousands of walkers and cyclists who use the towpath and marvel at the locks each year.
Salvaging the historic lock
Having been in active service transporting boats for over 200 years, movement in the ground adjacent to the lock caused one of its walls to bow meaning the lock and towpath have been closed since March. Specialist conservation teams, archaeologists and engineers have drained the lock of water and have been working to carefully dismantle the damaged section of wall. The team has been focusing on cleaning and salvaging the original historic bricks so they can be reused as part of the restoration and ensure the lock's historic character is preserved.
As you may know, the Tardebigge flight of locks carries the Worcester & Birmingham Canal 220 feet uphill over two-and-a-quarter miles. With 30 locks, the Top Lock is particularly deep because it was the site of an 18th century experimental vertical boat lift before it was replaced with a conventional lock. The canal was originally used as transportation of porcelain pots and Cadbury's chocolate, and is now a popular route for boaters as it offers a route into the heart of Birmingham at Gas Street Basin.
Share our fundraising campaign
We're aiming to raise £10,000 to help towards the cost of these vital restoration works. Support from the public will go directly towards the work needed to carefully remove and clean the historic bricks as well as purchasing new bricks and the materials needed to rebuild the lock walls.
Emily Harris, senior project manager, said: “Tardebigge Locks is our longest canal lock flight and is a popular route for boaters and people wanting to explore their local canal. As a charity it’s a privilege to maintain these centuries-old canals and locks and to keep them working for everyone to enjoy. The materials, skills and expertise required doesn’t come cheap and we’re asking people to help us fund these repairs and keep our amazing canal network open.
“Our canals are a national treasure. They matter not only to boaters and the local communities but to everyone else as well – because canals enhance the natural environment, they help to mitigate climate change, and they are integral to our future water security and supply. Emergency works like these at Tardebigge Lock highlight how vulnerable they can be, and how important it is that they are properly protected.
“All the donations to this crowdfunder will be gratefully received and will make a difference to this important stretch of canal.”
Who built Sydney Harbour Bridge?
Not a question you expected to see in Boaters’ Update but the answer is, the same company that built the 129-year-old Wrights Bridge over the Dudley No 2 Canal – Dormon Long & Co!
The bridge, which has been closed for several years due to safety concerns about the deck and its structural supports, connects boaters and the local community to the Old Hill train station and it’s now reopened after extensive repairs.
Thanks to funding from Sandwell Council’s Towns Fund grant, the 14-week project involved replacing and repairing the worn-out wooden sections of bridge deck and its steel supporting beams. Where possible sections of the bridge were kept preserving as much of the original fabric as possible. The supporting brick walls were also repaired, and the bridge access ramps have been resurfaced.
Awarded in 2022, the Towns Fund grant was an investment of £2.3 million aimed at improving canal towpaths. The Canal Network Connectivity Project has improved four and half miles of towpath improvements along the Netherton Tunnel Branch Canal, the Gower Branch Canal, the Old Mainline Canal, and the Dudley No.2 Canal.
Henriette Breukelaar, our director for the West Midlands, said: “It’s wonderful to see this bridge back open after being closed for many years. We thank Sandwell Council and The Rowley Regis Towns Fund Board for their support in getting this important community amenity back in use. As a charity we are facing some challenging financial times and support like this allows us to carry out repairs like this without having to divert the money needed to keep navigations open.
“With the bridge opening and the recent towpath improvements in Rowley Regis there hasn’t been a better time to cruise and explore the canal.”
Olympic swimming pools are big. Now imagine one being filled to the brim with silt! That’s how much we’re removing from Britain’s most inland port, Gloucester Docks.
It isn’t a one-off either. We've spent £3 million in the last three years on dredging the Docks to allow boats and tall vessels to freely navigate and moor in the heart of Gloucester.
The Docks form part of a vital supply chain providing half of the daily water supply for residents and businesses in Bristol. Water is pumped from the River Severn into Gloucester Docks, and along the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal. Unfortunately, this also brings tonnes of silt into the Docks from the river, and we're carrying out an annual programme of dredging to remove it.
The work is being undertaken by Land & Water using a digger mounted on a barge. The silt is then loaded onto a hopper and transported down the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal to a site near Parkend Bridge for safe disposal.
Paul Fox, our senior project manager, explains: “Every year we dredge huge amounts of silt from Gloucester Docks as part of our ongoing programme of maintenance. The build-up, caused by water pumped in from the Severn, is monitored by regular surveys so our charity can take action to remove it and ensure craft are able to enter and navigate the docks, including for the popular Tall Ships festival, which is next taking place in 2027.
“Good progress has been made to maintain the depths required with a couple of barge loads of silt being removed each day during the work.”
Dredging at Gloucester Docks
Summer heatwaves bring more strain on water resources
Following the driest spring since 1893* and continued hot sunny weather, with parts of England already officially in drought, we’re advising that water availability across some parts of the canal network is under strain with low river flows and reducing water holdings in our canal-feeding reservoirs.
Whilst the majority of the network is open and fully navigable, there are currently restrictions in place on certain canals. Mostly, this means reduced lock operating hours, which are intended to extend water supplies and navigation for as long as possible this summer. In some instances, low water supply means that boat passage through locks has been temporarily suspended.
A map of the affected areas can be found on the Notices section on our website: filter by reason: ‘Low Water Levels’ and select ‘Map View’.
While navigation restrictions currently mostly affect northern waterways, the continued dry weather means that restricted lock opening times are now being introduced elsewhere, including sections of the Grand Union and Oxford canals, and in some parts of the midlands.
Alex Hennessey, national boating manager, said: “The conditions we’ve seen so far this year are putting pressure on the water supplies needed to facilitate navigation.
“The lack of rainfall is the primary driver for low flows and, in some areas, this is compounded by essential reservoir repairs required by legislation, which are temporarily reducing their water storage capacity. In addition, the Trust is now required to comply with modern legally binding environmental conditions in place to protect rivers and streams which can limit the feed of water into the canal network, further reducing historic sources of water.
“The canal network has a constant demand for water. Whilst boat passage through locks is an obvious use of water, evaporation and transpiration can see canals lose as much as an inch of water on hot summer days. An underlying ‘sweetening flow’ is also always needed to support ecology and avoid canals turning stagnant.”
Our volunteer lock keepers have been helping to manage boat traffic at lock flights to ensure water supplies are used as sparingly as possible, and we continue our programme of water saving repair works to increase all available water flows into the canal network. Water levels are being reviewed on a daily basis and we will remove, or introduce, water saving measures as necessary. If it rains enough to allow safe navigation, restrictions will be lifted immediately: this is likely to require sufficient and prolonged rain over several weeks rather than a sudden very heavy downpour.
Alex continues: “We know how frustrating navigation restrictions are. We’re grateful to boaters for their support and patience, including those with deeper draughted vessels. We’re asking everyone to be extra vigilant this summer; sharing locks wherever possible, double-checking that paddles are fully closed, and planning routes carefully. These all make a real difference in helping conserve water and sustaining navigation for everyone.”
*Met Office figures for England, 2 June 2025
Senedd to debate ‘at risk’ Mon & Brec Canal
Next Wednesday, 9 July, the Welsh Parliament, the Senedd, is set to debate the preservation of the Mon & Brec for future generations.
It comes after legislation came into force that severely restricts the supply of water that feeds the canal.
For 225 years the principal feed of water to the Mon & Brec has been from the nearby River Usk. But the changes in legislation, brought in to provide protection for the environment around the Usk, now place strict limitations on the water that can be drawn from it. This makes real the unthinkable prospect that the canal could run dry when river levels fall.
Clearly, ensuring the canal has enough water is essential for boaters and also to sustain the numerous boating and other tourism jobs in South Wales that rely on it. The canal is an important destination that brings millions of visitors and millions of pounds into the local area. The prospect of it running dry for periods whenever river levels drop would also be disastrous for its wildlife, which after 225 years forms an important ecosystem in its own right.
A sunny day on the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal
We have been working to limit the impact of the legislation of years. While we were obliged by law to apply for a licence to take (or 'abstract') water, we appealed twice against the conditions that were applied to it. Sadly, we were unable to change the decision of Natural Resources Wales (NRW) to restrict the water being drawn from the Usk and this came into force towards the end of 2024. This is because the narrow legal process took no account of the impacts on the canal - despite the economic, social and environmental harm that will be caused.
Consequently, we faced the prospect of insufficient water to keep the canal open in the coming months. It was with a huge sigh of relief that we were able to secure an emergency supply of water this summer to keep the canal topped up for boats and for the benefit of local people and wildlife. Of course, with continued, and exceptionally, dry weather the canal is under further strain.
But, the impact of the licence was already apparent long before the driest spring since 1893. Unbelievably for March, we already had to begin limiting the water that we draw from the River Usk.
We are also very grateful for the considerable support from local groups such as Bridge 46 to Five Locks and Preserve & Protect The Mon & Brec Canal, including multiple media interviews.
We’re hopeful that the debate, which can be watched on Senedd.tv, will lead to the finding of a sustainable, and long-term, solution to the Mon & Brec’s water supply.
Maintenance, repair and restoration work this weekend
As you’ll know, there are times when parts of such an old network need unscheduled work to keep them open and navigable. It’s a 200+ year old living, breathing national treasure that takes a lot of TLC. This is why, when something is damaged or breaks, we set about getting it repaired and operational as soon as we can. This means that from time to time we have to carry out repairs outside of our major winter stoppage programme. So below, you’ll find a list of navigations that have ongoing restrictions that may affect you if you’re planning to get out on the water this weekend:
When restrictions to navigation happen, we get them up on to our website as soon as we can – always best to have a scan before you set off. You can find out how to get stoppage notification alerts on your smartphone in this article.
If you have any questions about a specific closure, or spot an error in our system, please get in touch.
Winter stoppage consultation
As you may know, we plan out and prioritise the winter repairs programme so that every penny of spend counts. The first round of consultation for the forthcoming winter stoppage programme closed at the end of May.
We’ve now reviewed the feedback and published a revised plan so that, should you want to, you can give more feedback – the deadline is 25 July.
Richard Parry reflects on 12 years at the tiller
In this final installment, and as we bid a fond farewell to Richard, here are two final topics that Richard reflected on at Crick Boat Show:
Firstly, Richard talks about our approach to canal restorations and how we'll be addressing them in the future.
And, rather aptly, Richard speculates on the biggest challenge likely to face his successor, Campell Robb.
Lucky Heather
As you’ve cruised around the network you’d have seen boats of all shapes and sizes. Some will be shiny new all-electric boats setting out on their first cruises. Others will have been round the network a few times and created many happy memories for those aboard. One such boat, which definitely falls in to the latter category, is a rare 1926 Cornish Lugger called White Heather.
After a complex rescue and 12-month search for a new owner, we’ve helped secure the future of this historic boat.
White Heather, a wooden-hulled sailboat, was originally built for fishing off the Cornish coast and later became a popular passenger boat in Fowey during the 1980s and 90s. In 2003 she undertook an Atlantic voyage to Morocco, Brazil and the Caribbean, returning to the UK and later appearing as a guest ship at the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival in 2011.
Sadly, after another decade afloat, the privately-owned White Heather fell into disrepair and sank in 2023 whilst in Gloucester Docks.
After it became clear White Heather's owner was unable to carry out the scale of works needed to raise and restore the vessel, or to license her to be kept on our waters, our licensing compliance & enforcement team began detailed planning to remove her. Recognising the high heritage value of White Heather, our heritage team was brought in to support the removal operation.
Heritage manager, Morgan Cowles, explains: “It fell upon our charity to recover White Heather from the water. At risk of breaking up, which could cause obstruction, pollution, and safety impacts, we set about a recovery that would keep her intact and save an important part of the nation’s maritime heritage.
“Because of the boat's history, my heritage colleagues supported the operation from the outset, which included help from Digital Dry Dock Ltd, who carried out free-of-charge 3D scans of White Heather. This made it possible to fully document and understand the structure and condition of the vessel.
“Initial recovery efforts were hampered by concerns over the integrity of the fragile wooden hull. A second attempt succeeded in January 2024, with contractors safely raising and transporting the vessel to local boatbuilders RW Davis & Son Ltd, who generously supported the operation/project by providing secure storage, and preservative measures.”
We contacted National Historic Ships and other maritime heritage organisations, as well as exploring the open market, to try and find a suitable new custodian. Despite significant interest and much goodwill, no formal offers were received – leading to the prospect that White Heather could indeed be lost.
Just as all options seemed exhausted, an interested party came forward in early 2025 with credible and exciting plans for a restoration of the historic vessel. After positive discussions and careful due diligence, ownership was formally transferred, and White Heather was moved to Hayling Island in May 2025, where full restoration work is now set to begin.
Morgan Cowles continues: “The rescue of White Heather is a testament to the dedication and expertise of my colleagues that required technical care, specialist knowledge, and close collaboration with local partners. Thanks to a great team effort we’ve been able to secure a future for this remarkable vessel.
“From Cornish fishing boat to transatlantic adventurer, White Heather has a story worth saving – and we’re proud to have played a part in keeping that story alive.”
Rescue of historic boat White Heather (2)
Simpler Recycling update
Deliveries of the new bins to Customer Service Facility sites are continuing, the last update we received from our waste contractors (who are supplying the bins) showed that over 77% of the bins are now in place. As expected, it is mainly the ones for food waste that are outstanding.
Last Edited: 04 July 2025
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