Belvoir Open Waterways Society

At the Parish Council meeting on October 20^th Paul Abel and Alan Wright from BOWS gave a presentation about the work of BOWS and their proposal to open up a canoe trail from Woolsthorpe to Hickling.

We have now been in discussion with BOWS for several months and more recently with British Waterways and the Notts Wildlife Trust and the time has come to put the BOWS proposal to the village and to ask you what you think.

The Parish Council has made a commitment to keep the village informed about canal related projects as they arise and to consult formally on specific plans when the time comes. Unfortunately, it is very costly to put together an official vote based on the electoral roll. However, we were very pleased with the successful response rate to the canal consultation questionnaire in the Spring of 2009 and so, on this occasion the Parish Council proposes to carry out a survey along the same informal lines:

§ The Parish Council will coordinate the responses and communicate the results to the village via the newsletter, website and Parish Council noticeboards.

§ The results will be used to inform how the Parish Council responds to the proposed Woolsthorpe to Hickling Canoe Trail; for example, in communicating to BOWS & British Waterways whether the village does or does not support the BOWS proposal in so far as it affects the parish of Hickling.

BOWS is an environmental pressure group based in Harby, Leicestershire, but it is concerned with the Grantham Canal throughout the section which runs from Woolsthorpe in the east to Hickling in the west. BOWS is an independent group of volunteers and is not affiliated to other Grantham Canal organisations.

BOWS was formed as an organisation to secure funding to enable the achievement of the following mission:

“to help protect and maintain the Grantham Canal between Hickling and Woolsthorpe for the benefit of walkers, wildlife, cyclists, anglers, and users of small, non-motorised craft”.

(www.bowsonline.org.uk)

At the Parish Council meeting on October 20^th 2009 Paul Abel offered the following details in relation to the proposed Woolsthorpe to Hickling Canoe Trail for consultation in Hickling:

The proposed canoe trail would run from Woolsthorpe to Hickling with a restaurant, car park and play area at Dove Cottage. The trail would be linear in nature (ie. there and back) with Hickling Basin forming a start/finish point.

The canoe trail proposal does not include any provision for parking, trailer turning, loading and unloading or trailer storage in Hickling. It was explained that canoeists would use the existing facilities

BOWS currently have approximately 50 members with a small number of canoes currently stored in the Wharf Building in Hickling (up to 4, at present). These would be available by arrangement to all members.

BOWS are affiliated to the British Canoe Union, which means that their members can take advantage of the existing right of all BCU members to canoe on the Grantham Canal. Non-BCU members are not currently permitted to canoe on the canal.

If the canoe trail were to be opened up it would be actively publicised on local authority websites as a leisure facility and promoted to youth organisations (such as schools, the Scouts, Duke of Edinburgh etc) and to all members of the British Canoe Union (Paul explained that there are 7,000 members in South Notts).

A 2 metre wide channel would need to be cleared and some silt clearance would need to be carried out to allow canoe use on the Hickling stretch. At present, the Hickling stretch isn’t suitable for canoe access.

BOWS would hope for funding support from the village for on-going reed clearance and silt removal, as required – no figures have been given for this; although, as a guideline, they estimate that it costs approx. £1,000 a day for reed clearance.

It is understood that Hickling is popular amongst fishermen and a ‘give and take’ relationship of tolerance from both sides is proposed.

There is additional information about BOWS on their website (www.bowsonline.org.uk) including details of the work they are already involved in and more detail about their aims and objectives, including how the organisation differs from other canal groups such as the Grantham Canal Society.

Consultation began in Harby in January and Paul’s presentation on October 20^th was the beginning of their consultation with Hickling.

It is important to note that any decision concerning proposals for the canal ultimately rests with British Waterways.

However, British Waterways have indicated that they will take into account the views of the village before granting permission to any organisation wishing to undertake projects affecting the canal in Hickling. Having explored this proposal for nearly a year now, and in addition to the information given in the proposal (above) there are a number of issues which the Parish Council feel should also be considered concerning the impact of traffic upon the village and wildlife on the canal.

The proposals for the canal were discussed at an open meeting on 20^th October 2009 and minutes of this can be read on the village website or a copy obtained from the Parish Clerk.

It is widely accepted that the canal requires management of some kind; either to

The decision that the village must make is whether this is the project which it wishes to support as a long-term way forward for managing the future of the canal.

· The Parish Council has no settled opinion on this proposal at this stage, and wishes to act on the basis of a consensus view of as many parishioners as possible.

· The Parish Council welcomes responses from non-parishioners but reserves the right to consider their views separately.

· The results of this survey will be used to guide the Parish Council’s response to BOWS and British Waterways on this particular project.

Canal Project Up-Dates

Grantham Canal Partnership:

(1) Heritage Application

In the last newsletter we reported on an expression of interest application being made which would include painting and repair work to the paving area and the possible renovation of the Lengthman’s Hut. We understand that the application has now moved on to the next stage and we will keep everyone up-to-date as we get more information.

At the last Parish Council we reported on a request we had received about mooring The Corvus (a renovated, 70ft long canal work boat) in the basin. Photographs were circulated. We have since learnt that the basin is unlikely to be suitable as a location and alternative sites are being sought.

Since the last Parish Council meeting we have had a series of really useful discussions with British Waterways with the aim of building up a working relationship over managing the future of the canal in Hickling. British Waterways are keen to be part of village deliberations and are sensitive to infrastructure concerns (in terms of possible negative effects on the village - traffic, 'creeping urbanisation' etc).

British Waterways are subject to very tight budget constraints especially on the Grantham Canal because it is a ‘remainder waterway’ and they are only able to carry out statutory work/obligations (ie on SSSIs) & even then it's a struggle. Because of this, they are always keen to explore any propositions made to them which help with maintenance and development although they are keen to emphasise that their permission is subject to very tight controls, particularly from an environmental/conservation perspective.

The long term aim is to re-open the Grantham Canal to full navigation although this is considered to be very long-term and would include full wildlife/environmental mitigation measures to compensate for any disturbance involved.

Managing the Canal for Wildlife:

This came out as the strongest priority in the questionnaire responses in the Spring and we are involved in on-going discussions with British Waterways and the Notts Wildlife Trust to explore all the possible options. There seems to be enthusiasm in the village for a voluntary group and this is likely to be an essential element of any plan to manage actively for wildlife. It is clear that any project would have to be compatible with the long-term aim to open the canal for navigation and from this point of view, British Waterway’s commitment to wildlife mitigation measures is important.

We do have a little more information on the current state of the canal. We do not have the problem experienced elsewhere along the canal of invasive Norfolk reed and there are currently no signs of it encroaching on to this stretch. This largely seems to be because of the healthy nature of the current habitat which is acting as a barrier. Management of the canal environment is necessary on an on-going basis and funding is unlikely to be available from British Waterways. There are some interesting ideas emerging, such as reed beds on feeder waterways which could control water quality and the algae problem.

This is the big issue which sits behind any proposals for canal projects. The questionnaire responses showed real concern about the impact of traffic and the concept of ‘creeping urbanisation’. These concerns are one side of the difficult balancing act which also involves keeping the Basin and canal areas looking attractive and cared for and support for village businesses, such as the pub, which rely on attracting visitors as well as locals.

Whilst it is true to say that the canal always was a source of activity and business for the village, it is also true to say that with narrowboats, the visitors arrived on their boats, enjoyed/worked in the village and then moved on. This narrowboat hey day was in a period of history when cars were relatively uncommon; this is no longer the case and whilst the narrowboats themselves would bring visitors and not cars, the issue of increased traffic does need to be considered when looking at any other projects.

We don’t have any magic solutions for solving these traffic concerns, but wish to reassure everyone that they won’t be forgotten! As always, the Parish Council would welcome any suggestions or input from parishioners.

This is a group which Hickling Parish Council began earlier this year (full details in an earlier newsletter!). The group is about to have its fourth meeting and is proving to be a really useful forum where representatives from canal communities along the full length of the canal have the opportunity to chat through plans, aims and concerns and where the canal organisations can come and present their projects and talk through all the relevant issues! There is a wide range of interests represented, with some villages/communities actively seeking lots of development whilst others prefer projects with minimal impact – part of the aim of the group is to try and accommodate these varying priorities in the overall planning. It has been a good source of information on all things canal-based and the involvement of British Waterways, The Grantham Canal Partnership, Grantham Canal Society and the Belvoir Open Waterways Society, Wildlife Trusts etc. is particularly valuable.

If you are interested in more information and/or minutes of the meetings, please ask any member of the Parish Council or the Clerk.

At the Parish Council meeting on October 20^th Paul Abel and Alan Wright from BOWS gave a presentation about the work of BOWS and their proposal to open up a canoe trail from Woolsthorpe to Hickling.

The Parish Council has made a commitment to keep the village informed about canal related projects as they arise and to consult formally on specific plans when the time comes. Unfortunately, it is very costly to put together an official vote based on the electoral roll (the vote conducted in 2008 cost approx £300). However, we were very pleased with the successful response rate to the canal consultation questionnaire in the Spring of 2009 which was relatively low in cost, and so, on this occasion, the Parish Council proposes to carry out a vote along the same informal lines:

§ To publish in the newsletter and on the village website information relating to the project we are consulting on – ie. the above canoe trail.

§ To publicise the basis of the vote in the newsletter and on the village website and give parishioners the opportunity to contact the Parish Council by December 10^th 2009 if they wish to register any concerns.

§ Voting leaflets would then be distributed to all households in the Parish after December 10^th and the closing date for voting would be clearly displayed.

§ Voters will be asked to give their names and addresses (because there are no electoral roll controls in a vote of this kind), a simple ‘yes’, ‘no’ response to the proposal and will be given the opportunity to add a comment.

§ The vote will primarily be open to parishioners but votes will also be accepted from non-residents who use the canal and basin area (in this case, information about the nature of their connection with the village would be requested).

§ The Chairman, Councillors and Clerk of the Parish Council will coordinate the responses and communicate the results to the village via the newsletter, website and Parish Council noticeboards. The results will be used to direct how the Parish Council responds to the proposed Woolsthorpe to Hickling Canoe Trail, for example, in communicating to BOWS whether the village does or does not support their proposal in so far as it affects the parish of Hickling.

BOWS was formed as an organisation to secure funding to enable the achievement of the following mission:

“to help protect and maintain the Grantham Canal between Hickling and Woolsthorpe for the benefit of walkers, wildlife, cyclists, anglers, and users of small, non-motorised craft”.

(www.bowsonline.org.uk)

At the Parish Council meeting on October 20^th Paul Abel offered the following details in relation to the proposed Woolsthorpe to Hickling Canoe Trail for consultation in Hickling:

The proposed canoe trail would run from Woolsthorpe to Hickling with a restaurant, car park and play area at Dove Cottage. The trail would be linear in nature (ie. there and back) with Hickling Basin forming a start/finish point.

BOWS currently have approximately 50 members with a small number of canoes currently stored in the Wharf Building in Hickling (up to 4, at present). These are available by arrangement to all members through Mr Wright.
BOWS are affiliated to the British Canoe Union, which means that their members can take advantage of the existing right of all BCU members to canoe on the Grantham Canal. Non-BCU members are not currently permitted to canoe on the canal.
If the canoe trail was to be opened up it would be actively publicised on local authority websites as a leisure facility and promoted to youth organisations (such as schools, the Scouts, Duke of Edinburgh etc) and to all members of the British Canoe Union (there are 7,000 members in South Notts).

A 2 metre wide channel would need to be cleared and some silt clearance would need to be carried out to allow canoe use on the Hickling stretch. In its present state, the Hickling stretch isn’t suitable for canoe access.
BOWS would hope for funding support from the village for on-going reed clearance and silt removal, as required.
It is understood that Hickling is popular amongst fishermen and a ‘give and take’ relationship of tolerance from both sides is proposed.
The canoe trail proposal does not include any provision for parking, trailer turning, loading and unloading or trailer storage. It was explained that canoeists would use the existing facilities (as a guideline, the Stathern car park is currently attracting approximately 25 cars at a time on Sundays).

Consultation began in Harby in January and Paul’s presentation on October 20^th was the beginning of their consultation with Hickling, of which this is the next step.

It is important to note that any decision concerning proposals for the canal ultimately rests with British Waterways. However, BW has indicated that it will take into account the Village’s views before granting permission to any organisation wishing to undertake projects affecting the canal in Hickling. Having explored this proposal for nearly a year now, and in addition to the information given in the proposal, above, there are a number of issues which the Parish Council feel should also be considered:

It is widely accepted that the canal requires management of some kind; either to prevent inappropriate development or to stop harmful deterioration.

The decision that the village must make is whether this is the project which it wishes to support as a long-term way forward for managing the future of the canal.