Lower Regent's Coalition

We’ve been running for three years now. Myself and Dave who started the group had been working on the canal with other organisations and we naturally progressed to adopting the stretch from Limehouse Basin to Mile End.

We both live nearby, so it made sense to want to look after somewhere in our community.

We started with litter picks, and progressed from there. Moo Canoes, who are based in the Basin, support us so we can pick up rubbish on the water. Hopefully it’s a bit of fun for everyone taking part too.

Since we got a regular group going it’s been a case of ‘anything else we can do?’. We’ve been successful in a number of funding pitches, up to £10k in one case, which has allowed us to build floating reed beds that provide habitat for birds, fish and invertebrates. We’ve also just created  300 square metres of wild meadows.

When the Trust drained this stretch for repairs we saw the chance to clean up rubbish from the canal bed. We got about 8-10 tonnes in total. And found an unexploded World War Two grenade.

We get up to 20 people for each event. It’s a great mix of established faces and new people. We’re always on the lookout for more help too.

Everyone knows the Thames in London, but discovering the canals is a great thing to do. The Regent’s Canal is a gem of a place to have in your neighbourhood, hidden off the main streets. It has so much potential, and that’s what drives us on.