VOLUNTEER lock keepers are needed to help keep a stretch of the UK’s longest canal open this year.
People are being urged to donate a day a week to operate the Gargrave stretch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal, located on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales.
Lock keepers are ‘the face of the waterways,’ and this iconic role has been a familiar feature for hundreds of years on Britain’s canals. With many people enjoying their local canal and towpath as a place to escape and relax, modern-day volunteer lock keepers are an invaluable part of the visitor experience, said the Canal & River Trust.
Offering a friendly welcome, they provide local information and assist with a variety of important tasks, including water management, environmental and heritage maintenance tasks, and assisting boaters and public passing through the area.
Andy Salt, volunteering leader at the trust, said: “Gargrave is a beautiful and popular spot on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal, close to the summit. It can be vulnerable to changes in water levels, so monitoring and helping to manage water levels is an important part of the volunteer lock keeping role and helping to look after, repair, paint, mow, plant along the six locks at Gargrave to keep them looking their best.
“You don’t need experience of boating or working on the waterways. The most important things are enthusiasm, a willingness to learn, and a friendly manner. It’s a great opportunity for anyone who loves being outdoors, is looking for something different to do, and is interested in keeping the tradition of lock keeping alive.”
The role works on a shift basis between April and October, assisting for a minimum of one day a week. People of all ages above 18 and experiences are encouraged to apply, with training and induction sessions provided. A new welfare unit in Gargrave at Higherland Lock, near the boater facilities in the middle of the village, is being installed for the volunteer team.
Sean McGinley, director at the Canal & River Trust’s Yorkshire and North East region, added: “Volunteers are a hugely important part of enabling our charity to continue to preserve and protect this national treasure, while helping to celebrate the canals’ colourful history and bring their stories to new audiences. If you are interested and thinking of joining us, our message is ‘your canal needs you’.”
Volunteering on the canals provides its own health benefits. Canals have been proven to have a positive impact on people’s mental wellbeing. A study last year by King’s College London showed positive associations between visits to canals and rivers and mental wellbeing, as well as a positive experience for feelings of safety and social inclusion relative to other environments.About one million people in Yorkshire live within a 10-minute walk of trust-managed waterways, but many don’t realise that the locks, bridges, aqueducts and towpaths, together with the habitat for wildlife, are looked after by a charity. For further information, search ‘volunteer lock keeper Gargrave’ on the Canal & River Trust website: wwwcanalrivertrust.org.uk/volunteer
