– Just £70 Per Person for Seven Days Full Board –
The Inland Waterways Association’s Waterway Recovery Group (WRG) is looking for volunteers to help restore Britain’s lost waterways this summer. Without the support of volunteers, these canal restoration projects cannot be completed and valuable history will be lost forever.
The WRG have 25 canal restoration projects
In 2019, the Waterway Recovery Group (WRG) has 25 canal restoration projects, or Canal Camps, all around England and Wales that need support. Working outdoors, volunteers can find themselves carrying out various activities such as clearing vegetation and bush-whacking, or learning new skills such as bricklaying, stone walling, restoring locks, re-lining canals or creating towpaths.
Canal Camps cost just £70.00
Each Canal Camp is one week-long, costs £70 and includes three meals a day plus endless tea and cake. Basic accommodation is provided, usually in a village hall or scout hut. Volunteers will need to provide their own camp bed or sleeping mat. All transfers to and from the accommodation to the work site are included but volunteers will need to make their own way to the Canal Camp. If traveling by public transport, volunteers can be collected from the nearest railway station.
Mike Palmer, Chair, Waterway Recovery Group, says, “We are looking for volunteers from all walks of life to help us with our canal restoration projects. Our canal camps, offer a week-long volunteering holiday for anyone who loves being outdoors and enjoys meeting new people.
“In return for helping to preserve our industrial heritage and restoring our beloved canals, we can offer volunteers a fantastic chance to restore a flight of locks, build a new section of canal or even rebuild a bridge. It’s also a great opportunity to have fun and mix with different people who all share a common goal – to bring our waterways back to life.”
Support canal restoration societies
The aim of the Canal Camp programme is to support the admirable work of local canal restoration societies. The largest projects that need support in 2019 are based on the Grantham Canal in Nottinghamshire, the Cotswold Canals and the Wey & Arun Canal in Surrey and West Sussex.
If you’re interested in volunteering on a Canal Camp, visit the website www.wrg.org.uk to see a full list of all 2019 dates and locations. You can also email us at [email protected] or call 01494 783 453 to order a new brochure. Camps are open to anyone aged 18 and above and no experience is necessary. All personal protection equipment is supplied. You just need a pair of steel toe cap boots.
Waterway Recovery Group is part of Inland Waterways Association, a national charity dedicated to supporting and restoring the country’s canals and rivers. Over the past 70 years WRG volunteers have managed to restore hundreds of miles of canals. Most of Britain’s canals were built over 200 years ago to help move goods around the country, but many fell into disrepair after the railways were built. Today, the canals are busier than ever providing a place to enjoy waterways by foot, bike or boat.
