Homebuilder offers helping hand

TO HELP Chesterfield Canal remain a picturesque and usable stretch of waterway, Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes North Midlands has donated £1000 and attended a volunteer day with Chesterfield Canal Trust.

The donation was made as part of the developer’s Community Fund scheme and will go towards the charity’s efforts to restore the last nine miles of the canal.

Twelve miles of the canal have already been restored along with 37 locks and 11 bridges since 1989.

Rod Auton, publicity officer at the Chesterfield Canal Trust, said: “We were delighted to welcome these hard-working guys to join our own volunteers.

“We do this work regularly to help maintain the beautiful Chesterfield Canal in partnership with the Canal & River Trust, which owns it.”

A total of 12 employees from Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes recently volunteered with the trust and helped clear overgrown vegetation to ensure the canal is usable and thriving, and presented the cheque to the charity.

The Chesterfield Canal Trust is a charity run entirely by volunteers, which aims to promote the full restoration and appropriate development of the Chesterfield Canal. It is currently campaigning to complete the canal’s restoration by 2027, the 250th anniversary of its opening.

The developer’s helpers boarded Python, the trust’s 92- year- old workboat which carries the tools and equipment, takes away any prunings and rubbish as well as acting as a welfare vehicle.

Mark Cotes, managing director at Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes North Midlands, said: “The Chesterfield Canal Trust is an incredible charity and its volunteers do an incredible job in restoring the length of the canal to ensure it’s still fit for use.

“We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to contribute towards this with our £1000 donation, as well as our employees getting the chance to volunteer at the canal for the day.”

For more information on how to support the Chesterfield Canal Trust, please visit https://chesterfield- canal-trust.org.uk/donation/ Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes is delivering new homes in Nottinghamshire and supporting the communities in which it builds.

To find out more, visit www.barratthomes.co.uk or www.dwh.co.uk

Builders swap their day job for maintaining a stretch of canal. Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes North Midlands employees volunteering with the Chesterfield Canal Trust.

PHOTOS SUPPLIED Volunteers on board Python Chesterfield Canal. during their day on the

Derek Caddy and Dave Warsop are pictured with the £1000 cheque donated to the trust.