After another year of disrupted access to its historic dry dock in Banbury, Tooley’s Boatyard is appealing for funds to begin restoring the wooden narrowboat Hardy. The £29,000 restoration appeal could also help sustain traditional boatbuilding skills while canal closures prevent customers reaching the yard.
Tooley’s Boatyard is launching a £29,000 appeal to begin restoring Hardy after a second year of disrupted access to its dry dock.
THE yard is asking Banbury to help put its empty dry dock to work after the Oxford Canal closure prevented customers from bringing boats in for repairs.
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It normally handles about two boats a week in its historic dock. Staff are still taking work elsewhere where they can, but travelling to boats cannot replace the work that comes through the yard. Last year, drought and flooding disrupted access for about eight months. Now, Tooley’s is concerned about surviving another prolonged closure.
Matthew Armitage, who has operated the boatyard for 24 years, said: “We have customers waiting and people ready to work, but the boats cannot get here. It is worrying to look into an empty dock when we know how much work there is to do. We have worked hard to recover from last year, and I am concerned about how we will weather this one.”
About eight people depend on the yard for employment. Tooley’s also trains apprentices and keeps traditional boat repair skills in use. Its dry dock and forge are protected as a Scheduled Monument, but Mr Armitage said the future of the site depends on keeping a working team there.
The yard now plans to raise £29,000 to begin restoring wooden narrowboat Hardy, the last boat built by Nurser Brothers of Braunston. Tooley’s saved it from destruction in 2018 and has developed a five-year restoration plan. The first phase would tackle urgent work to protect the hull and establish what further repairs are needed.
“The empty dock is an opportunity to start on Hardy,” Mr Armitage said. “If we can fund the first phase, it could help keep our craftspeople and apprentices working together through part of the closure.
“Volunteers would be able to help with suitable jobs, and visitors could follow the work – but we still need boats to be able to reach Banbury.”
Richard Guard, chair of Tooley’s Boatyard Trust, said: “We established the trust in 2019 and secured a 150-year lease to protect the working boatyard. We never imagined that repeated canal closures could put the business at risk while its historic buildings remained secure.”
Mr Armitage added: “This matters beyond the boatyard. Some of our customers live on their boats. Others are unable to cruise or bring them in for essential repairs. Canal businesses need a working waterway, and Banbury benefits when boats and visitors can come through.”
Tooley’s has worked beside the canal since 1778. Tom Rolt’s boat, Cressy, was converted into a home at the yard before the journey recorded in Narrow Boat, the book that inspired the establishment of the Inland Waterways Association.
An open weekend at the yard in early October brought the appeal within £1800 of the £5600 target of the first phase, which has a November deadline. To pledge support, visit tooleysboatyardtrust.org.uk/support-tooleys-boatyard/
