The Wet Web
Helen Gazeley reports on the community moorings where boaters are taking a hands-on approach to caring for their riversides.
THE acute shortage of moorings in London is no secret. Nor is it a surprise, given the difficulty of finding affordable accommodation on land and the increase in living aboard generally.
Indeed, the Canal & River Trust’s own figures state that London has witnessed a rise in boats without a home mooring of close to 450% between 2010 and 2019, with 91% of boaters in London and the South East describing their boat as their permanent home.
According to Aquavista, who run 18 waterside and marina locations across England, including Limehouse and Poplar in East London, London has more boats than Amsterdam – 4000 lining the 100 miles of canals that run through the capital – and 10,000 people on board.
Residential moorings are at a premium and, even if you could afford one, some marinas have a 10-year waiting list. At the time of writing, the cheapest boat for sale on Aquavista’s pages, in Poplar, was £160,000 for a widebeam (www.aquavista.com/).
And yet, much of London’s potential for moorings is untapped and in danger. Surge Coop (www. surge. coop and www. instagram. com/ surge_ coop) was set up in 2018 to create community moorings focusing on Bow Creek, the tidal estuary of the River Lea which enters the Thames opposite Greenwich.
“We realised the heritage loss that was happening in this area,” said Al Cree, co-founder of the co-operative, “and we could see all the new developments along this waterway which is currently one of the last stretches of water in London with prime real estate which can maximise value on water.” Surge identified 41 unused wharves in the area that would be suitable for larger barges, which aren’t well catered for in the capital.
The problem is that regeneration schemes neglect the possibilities of usable moorings, removing access ladders, mooring bollards, cleats, power and water supplies.
In the face of rapid redevelopment in the area, the co-operative not only works to improve areas with rubbish clearance and wildflower planting, but to connect with stakeholders on how best to promote the re-use of historic quaysides and wharves to keep the riverside active. Given the added benefits identified by the Heritage Harbours initiative (reported here in January) of local heritage to developments, it would seem churlish and shortsighted of developers to overlook the opportunities.
Elsewhere in London, others have taken a very hands-on approach to regenerating moorings. When barrister
Paul Powlesland found himself served with a Section 8 (in which the CRT gives 28 days’ notice of their intent to remove a vessel), instead of contesting it, he took his narrowboat on a hair-raising trip to Barking, three bends in the river down from Bow Creek. He’d already identified this area as a possibility for moorings and a place to squat.
The gamble paid off, helped immeasurably by the actions of Paul and the boaters who joined him. They’ve each committed to improving the area, including rubbish removal and reinstalling the river path from Barking to Ilford, for 12 hours each a month. The Crown Estate, which owns the land, has been extremely supportive and, with the establishment of the River Roding Trust (www. riverrodingtrust.org.uk), granted it a lease in 2019.
For Paul, this is the realisation of his dream of boaters enjoying a connection to their river in a way that is impossible under what he describes as the ‘top down approach’ by the CRT, telling a recent IWA webinar: “We are able to take that continued action that is needed to protect the river, because we want to, because we live there, and we love this river and we want to care for her, and having that connection between boaters and the river they live on in such an in-depth way, I think is possibly one of the more important things about community moorings.”
You can support the River Roding Trust in its work by buying lottery tickets in the Barking and Dagenham Lottery (www. lotterybd.co.uk/support/riverroding-trust) and keep up with developments via the Friends of the River Roding Facebook page ( www. facebook. com/ groups/ riverroding). The IWA webinar on community moorings is now available to watch on YouTube (youtu.be/lv98VaHzWcA).