A barge moored in Brindley Place Birmingham

All Press Releases

BW Scotland Budget statement

25 March 2010
British Waterways (BW) welcomes the UK Government’s announcement today in its Budget statement of plans to move England & Wales' 200-year old canal network into a mutual organisation, such as a charitable trust, and is discussing with the Scottish Government the options for its waterways in Scotland.

Government to mutualise British Waterways

24 March 2010
British Waterways (BW) welcomes the UK Government’s announcement today in its Budget statement of plans to move England & Wales’ 200-year old canal network into a mutual organisation, such as a charitable trust.

Black Country canals offer a route back to work for 100 jobseekers

24 March 2010
The Black Country canal network is providing 100 unemployed people with the opportunity to make a fresh start by taking part in a scheme to work on the West Midlands canal network for 6 months.

Taste of the canal

24 March 2010
This year the Kennet & Avon Canal is enjoying its bicentenary, and to help the celebrations go with a swing, local brewers Wadworth & Co. Ltd, have created their very own taste of the waterways - a cask ale called the 'K&A 200'.

Caen Hill open for Easter

22 March 2010
British Waterways is pleased to announce that the Caen Hill Flight of Locks will be reopened to the public in time for the traditional start to the outdoor leisure season, the Easter holiday break, on Saturday 27 March, 2010.

British Waterways seeks kingfisher counters

19 March 2010
British Waterways – guardian of the nation’s canals and rivers - is inviting nature lovers of all ages to visit their local canal, river, reservoir or dock and tell us what creatures they see there. This year’s survey will focus on the splendid regent of the waterways – the kingfisher, whose numbers are expected to be affected by the recent harsh winter.

Life in the slow lane

15 March 2010
Record visitor numbers highlight waterways as the perfect location for a staycation. As British Tourism Week gets underway, record visitor levels have been announced for the nation’s 200 year-old canal network. Last year the number of adults visiting an inland waterway topped 13 million.

Graffiti removal prject will reveal lost detail of city canals

10 March 2010
Important features of Wolverhampton’s industrial heritage are set to be revealed in the coming weeks as a project to remove layers of graffiti from many of the city’s canal bridges gets underway.

New sea gates to be floated into Sharpness Docks

04 March 2010
A set of massive sea gates is being installed at Sharpness Docks to replace the original steel guardians which have given safe passage to craft and held back the might of the sea for over 50 years.

Waterways battle against alien invader

04 March 2010
British Waterways and the Environment Agency have combined resources to tackle a growing problem on Yorkshire’s canals and rivers this week, after coming under threat from an ‘alien invader’ – an invasive weed known as Floating pennywort or Hydrocotyle ranunculoides.