INDEPENDENT SERVICE PROVIDERS ON OUR CANALS

n  Unlike most sporting activities where the pitches, sports centres etc are built and run by local authorities and clubs, the facilities to enable recreational use of the canals and rivers have been developed since 1968 by private investment of Freeholders or leaseholders.

n  Those firms were encouraged in the early days to start or develop their businesses through low or nil rents and easy access to hire boat licences. BW recognised that it needed the businesses at that time.   This was exactly the same way as the original canal shareholders gave the owners of the freeholds through which they cut the canals, rights to encourage them to use the waterways.   Only with such use were they economically viable.

n  The owners are now "locked in" to their businesses. It is often their pension.  They cannot easily move their businesses away from the waterway or to another waterway. Many businesses are in rural or urban areas that have only restricted alternative employment. BW controls the "track" and also affects their business as landlord in some way or another through agreements over premises, moorings or licences.   Some of these are in contravention of the rights afforded freeholders in original enabling acts.

n  As BW is now developing its own "business" interests across most aspects of the provision of services for waterway customers  - the landlord is competing directly with the tenant.

n  BW control most of the on line moorings and now also a lot of the Marina moorings.  Their pricing policies have a direct bearing on the trade of the small and medium businesses.

n  With the regular changes in BW Management and policies, it is very difficult for small and medium businesses to obtain a clear view of what is BW’s latest "thinking" let alone policies.

n  The businesses recognise the Government support through "Waterways for Tomorrow" which makes the future of the waterways and their investment more secure.  They compliment BW on the major progress with the maintenance backlog.

n  It is now vital to build on those successes through a better understanding by BW of the role and value of small and medium businesses. This needs an investment in time by BW Senior Staff and the development of clear policies.   These can be debated with the BMF,  its canal related trade groups and eventually shared with the customers.

n  The customers need a secure basis for their mooring, service and facilities if they are to stay boating on the canals or if they are to be tempted to continue to buy new and attractive boats.

n  The businesses that operate and restore the Hire boats, (average replacement cost £80,000 per boat) Hotel boats and "Traditional Boats" need clarity and security as they invest large sums of money in the boats and licences to the benefit of the waterways as a whole.

n  Section 3.21 of Waterways for Tomorrow looks for "improving quality in infrastructure". Section 4.3 states "We want British Waterways to take full advantage of the skills, expertise, innovation, and funding opportunities offered by the private sector"

n  Given the right relationship with BW, small and medium businesses can provide a great deal of this investment in urban and rural areas as they did from 1968 onwards.  BW could not then, and cannot now achieve this on its own.

 

woodcuts courtesy of John O'Connor ©