It is a vast, multi-million-pound endeavour to upkeep the nation’s 250-year-old man-made canal network. This winter’s essential works will span 45 canals and rivers nationwide, including 137 separate projects at more than 100 locks, 14 bridges, two tunnels and a host of embankments, sluices, culverts and canal walls. The work, which spans the length and breadth of the country, takes place between November and March when there is less boating traffic.
Six of these large-scale lock gate replacement projects are possible thanks to funds raised by players of People’s Postcode Lottery. This fantastic support enables 20 lock gates, which have reached the end of their 25-year lives, to be removed and replaced with new ones. Each lock gate is individually designed and hand-built at one of our two specialist workshops, by skilled craftspeople using traditional techniques.
The lock gate we a replacing
- the bottom gates at City Road Lock on the Regent’s Canal in Islington, London, due to take place in November;
- the top and bottom end gates of Ham Lock 87 on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Thatcham, near Newbury, Berkshire, due to happen in November and December;
- the top end gates on Bottom Barge Lock on the Staffordshire & Worcester Canal at Stourport, Worcestershire, due to take place in January and February 2026;
- the top and bottom end gates on Gees Lock 36 on the Grand Union Canal, near Leicester, due to happen from January to March 2026;
- the top and bottom end gates of Lock 12 on the Calder & Hebble Canal at Brighouse, Yorkshire, due to be replaced between January and March 2026;
- the top and bottom end gates on Lock 87 on the Rochdale Canal in Manchester, due to take place between February and March 2026.
The public can see this important work for themselves at City Road Lock on the Regent’s Canal in London, where the site will be set up with viewing areas. People can discover more about the colossal effort and skills involved in maintaining the canals from our in-house construction team. Our colleagues will be on hand to provide information and answer questions about the works.
What it takes to look after our canals
Malcolm Horne, our chief infrastructure and programmes officer, said: “Winter is the time of year when the focus for our skilled in-house construction teams turns to delivering the larger maintenance and engineering projects that are essential to keeping our 250-year-old canal network open and alive.
“Canals are centuries-old working heritage and, with rising costs, climate pressures and more extreme weather events, the challenge of keeping them in good condition for navigation has never been greater.
“While millions of people use and visit the canals every week, perhaps they don’t stop to think about what it takes to look after them – or what we would lose if they were gone. Our canals cannot take care of themselves - keeping the nation’s canals open and safe requires millions of pounds. And the reality is, we cannot keep them alive without the support of boaters, our volunteers, supporters, and the wider public.”
