KenK

I am aware of that but given the nonsense put forward in the previous case re Houseboat certificates the defense does seem to need some advise as to the correct licence. In addition that C&RT's understanding of the 1995 act is at the very least flawed. Hence a witness for the defence. Ken

The above might be true but of course C&RT do not actually have to use the courts. Once a Section 8 notice is issued the can after 28 days simply remove the boat if the boater does not mend their ways. Equally if the boater then does do as requested they will keep a close eye and repeat the Section 8 should they lapse, done a couple of times then simply refuse to issue a licence. Then it is up to the boater to take the matter up with the court and you will not get legal aid in those circumstances. Lets not get carried away, at the end of the day C&RT can make life impossible should they wish to but some boaters really do just ask for trouble. All organisations make mistakes and have bad apples within them, give some individuals a little authority and it brings out the worst in them. Equally some boaters and for that matter any other tag you choose to use refuse to follow simple rules just because they are human beings and then instead of using a little common sense they defend their right to be an idiot. It looks, as far as I understand it, as though Andy Wingfield has the right of it but equally if he had been a little more sensible he wouldn't be back in court. Win or lose it is not something I would wish to keep doing. Insisting on your rights is all very well but sometimes it is better to let sleeping dogs lie. The other problem is if C&RT do win then they have a judgement which goes against the 1995 act, not something I would wish for. Ken

Forgive my ignorance but is it not possible to have an expert witness on Andy's side in this type of case? Someone who Miss Easty could call who understands the current legal position with regard to licence conditions etc. That would I assume solve the issue of Miss Easty's lack of understanding. Ken

The Inverter I purchased last year has a remote on / off switch supplied as part of the package, I never used it because the inverter is mounted inside the boat but they do exist. Ken

You try these people, we bought a sofabed from them years ago, used a lot very comfortable both as a sofa and as a bed. They were based in Kinver just on the canal. http://www.wilsonsupholstery.co.uk/ Ken

That's a little over dramatic. Winter moorings do not start until November so all of the visitor mooring will be subject to the usual rules. We travelled from Newbury to Bristol and back in August probably the busiest time of the year and had absolutely no problems mooring. It is shallow in places and yes the vegetation needs urgent attention but you could easily take two gentle weeks to travel to Newbury and by then the bridge will be fixed one would hope. Ken

Also Aston Marina on the Trent and Mersey at Stone, not as close to Northampton but not that far with good motorway links. Aston also has a covered heated paint shed on site with an excellent painter, unless you fancy doing the painting yourself. Ken

If you are based in Cornwall and your workforce is there why not forget the canal network. You simply need a somewhere close to home / workforce, hull there on a truck, fit out and return to the canal once it is complete. The general consensus is fitting out can take a lot longer than your current schedule. You need to factor in the cost of moving the boat but could offset that against the cost and time of moving a workforce and / or yourself to a boat located on a canal hard standing somewhere. Ken

In one of the recent topics someone posted a short list of names and contact details for a number of enforcement officers, whilst hunting on the C&RT website this morning, for something completely different, I came across a complete list. As it is an A4 sheet with a map and locations, the following is a link, should you need to contact one. https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/media/library/8515-enforcement-officer-regions-and-contact-details.pdf Ken

I think you are correct with regard to region by region. We spent the last fours years based on the T&M at Stone and the basic maintenance always seemed good. Moved the boat back to the K&A at Easter, Coventry, both Oxfords and of course the Thames (EA) were all in good condition. The K&A has been sadly neglected, massive overgrowth of vegetation, never mind boaters a walker in some places would not be aware that the canal was there, the trees hang down the vegetation at the edge grows up and they are in a tunnel and of course it has always been shallow, due to the design of the canal. Just by contrast on the same canal there has been a significant amount of engineering work, locks which originally did not have bye-washes now have them. They are spending the money but not always on the basics which matter to boaters. Ken

The other option is to buy a efficient fridge in the first place. There is a huge difference in terms of electrical consumption between and A+ fridge and an A+++ approximately twice as much per year. There are only a few manufacturers making A+++ fridges, I have been doing the research as mine is on its last legs and I'm looking for a replacement. No connection with the manufacturer except they support my wife's favourite football team but these are the most efficient I have found so far. Liebherr TP1720 147 ltr. 63 kWH per annum. £340-£350. AC 240 V Liebherr TP1760 154 ltr. 64 kWH per annum. £400-£405. AC 240 V These are both Larder fridges no freezer compartment, something which on the boat we have rarely if ever used. Ken

The following link should take you to John Dodwells recent talk to the IWA Warwickshire branch. He covers quite a few topics and many of them are the subject of frequent debate on here. https://app.box.com/s/r1ugy4sp59b0q486wdbqp062y0z4ac8c Ken

S43(3) I would have to look it up for the exact wording but it is something like this "The board can set such charges for their services and facilities as they wish and apply terms and conditions to those services and facilities as they see fit." It seems like a catch all, however what are the services and facilities? If as BW and C&RT apply it then it is the use of the canal system and not specific services and facilities. I suspect it was designed to apply to use of wharfs etc. i.e. services and facilities in excess of the norm. As a, probably not very good example, room service in a hotel, charged in addition to the cost of the room. This section of the act also applies / applied to the Rail Authority which makes it even less likely that it was intended to be used as BW and later C&RT do . However unless it is ever challenged successfully in a court we are stuck with it. Ken

It is in your licence terms and conditions and applies to all boaters, Section 2.1. Relevant law is 1962 Transport Act S43 (3). Their use of S43 (3) is questionable but unless and until it was tested in a court it stands. Ken

Yes, I have, carefully. The OP stated his conversations have been with the enforcement officer presumably at his boat, although he would need to confirm that. Many posters have advised him to contact the local office bypassing the enforcement officer, he needs to speak to a senior manager. Ken

The trust are not all bad although some posters on here would have you believe differently. Recently at Newbury on the K&A they arranged for a lady who had just lost her husband and was registered blind to stay on the visitor mooring close to the centre of town so that she could sort out her problems with the help of her friends and family. They put up an official notice on the mooring and she stayed there for over three weeks on a 24 hour mooring. She is no longer on her boat as it is not possible due to her disability but the boat has been moved to a 14 day mooring where it has stayed again with C&RT blessing for at least a month all without charges. You need to talk to the local office, explain your problem and see what they say. Ken

As the title page clearly states that is the CC Monitoring process and all of those letters without exception only apply to someone without a home mooring. Dean has one and therefore only has to move every 14 days for a distance which he determines. C&RT have said often enough that they cannot specify a distance whether for someone with a home mooring or someone without. Deans reason for wandering around that general area is because he like it there and that is a good enough reason. Ken Ken

Don't worry, it already is. Ken

It does seem to vary a lot. We spent the last four years on the Trent & Mersey, the maintenance on there including vegetation always seemed pretty good. Minor problems seemed to be dealt with quickly. Not every canal in the Midlands was to the same standard Stratford Canal last year was in a terrible state. We moved the boat back to the K&A earlier this year, South Oxford below Lower Heyford was a delight. K&A on the other hand has gone downhill in the four years we were away in terms of general routine maintenance, vegetation etc. but at the same time a lot of major work has been done to the locks, several had brand new bye washes installed. In answer to the OP's question, I can't see a change of manager making any difference. The underspend will still be there and different waterway regions seem to have different ways of spending what money they do have. Ken

I would be interested in Edd's answer with regard to what does C&RT tell it volunteers with regard to who is in charge at a lock. To be fair with one exception I have found volunteers helpful, in the case of the two on the Marple flight a couple of years ago exceptional. The only poor experience was on the Stratford canal, just left one lock, boat coming towards us had left the next one and left the gate open for us as we had for him, all straightforward. Then a figure appeared at the lock and closed the gate, blew the horn to alert him, he took no notice. My wife reached the lock in time to prevent him opening the paddles and reopened the gate. His reason was that there was a boat coming up, yes there was it was just entering a lock four locks down, the two in between were full ready for us. We were through all three before they had exited their lock, it was a hire boat and they were being careful, no problem with that. It was just inexperience on the volunteers part nothing to worry about. Nice to have C&RT on here willing to engage with the discussions pity more C&RT managers don't take part Ken

Of course it is but common sense and good practice go out of the window as soon as a child is hurt. There should be an investigation but it will not make any difference the fence will go up no matter what the reason for the fall. As far as the £1.5 million cost I read somewhere that C&RT estimated that's what it would cost because of the heritage nature of the structure, wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if English Heritage get involved. Ken

I can understand that C&RT now have little choice with regard to installing a fence, it doesn't matter how or why the boy fell, the HSE will require a solution to prevent it happening again. I do not however understand why it is reported to have a potential cost of £1.5 million for a 100 metre fence. Ken

When you travel from Reading to Oxford you purchase a one day license. The license starts from twelve o'clock (midnight) on the day you purchase it, as you can't buy it at that time you actually get all of the time from when you purchase the license until midnight effectively free, then you have until midnight the next day to complete the journey. So one day license covers 24 hours plus the time from when you purchase it until midnight the same day. As for a transit in one day, that would be one very long day. Ken

Very close this year at Bradford on Avon. Coming up the lock, really wanted to stop and use the facilities but loads of boats already waiting. Stepped off the boat with the cassette whilst it was still rising and sorted that, returned handed the empty cassette to my wife, stepped on the gunwale and my foot skidded off, it was wet. Left hanging by one hand, fortunately I was strong enough to pull myself up and get my legs onto the back deck, much I'm sure to the dissatisfaction of numerous witnesses all hoping for a good laugh at my expense. Cynical me! Ken I did manage to trip over a rope and fall into our marina, some years ago, that's when I found out it was an old gravel pit and about twenty feet deep.

I'd like to back to the BW format, lose the Waterways Partnerships, Council, etc. More people on the ground who have a true understanding of the Waterways and pay for them by reducing the numbers of managers on very high salaries. At the moment the triangle is upside down, the apex at the bottom, it needs turning the right way up, lots of people on the ground and far fewer in offices. Then all we need is someone like Dave Fletcher in charge. Ken