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The charity making life better by water

The tragic loss of our colleague, Clive Porter

Our chief executive, Richard Parry, has released a message about the incident that took place on the Aylesbury Arm of the Grand Union Canal on Monday 26 April.

Sadly, one our colleagues, Clive Porter, a licensing ranger with the Trust, died on Monday 26 April on the Grand Union Canal towpath in Aylesbury, in an incident which is the subject of a police murder investigation. A man has now been charged in connection with this.

This tragic loss of Clive is deeply distressing for us all and our thoughts go out to his family, friends and all who knew him.

Remembering Clive

Clive had worked on the waterways since 2010 when he joined us on his retirement from the police force after more than 30 years, his final role being as the local police officer at Tring, joining the South East waterways team to continue to serve his local community.

A devoted family man, Clive went quietly about his work diligently and conscientiously. You would rarely see Clive in one of our offices because he loved being outdoors and was passionate about the environment; the towpath was his natural workplace where he would be found, come rain or shine.

Even if you didn't know Clive, I imagine all of us will recognise the type of person he was. Reliable, steadfast, unassuming and entirely trustworthy. Doing his job with little fuss and with a calm, friendly manner. He was respected by colleagues and by all those who met him, someone who believed firmly in his mission to support others.

Clive was a role model for us all, and he will be very sadly missed. The loss we face will be a small fraction of the loss that his family will bear and our hearts go out to them. Even though he has been taken from us in this brutal, pointless attack, he will always remain a part of the South East waterways that he gave so much to.

Last Edited: 04 May 2021

photo of a location on the canals
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