Grand Union Canal

New accessible canal bollard could transform mooring for disabled boaters

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Web Editor

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July 27, 2026

An innovative canal mooring bollard which makes tying up easier for boaters, especially those with disabilities, has been installed at a pilot site on the Grand Union Canal near Milton Keynes. The project – a partnership between Canal & River Trust, MK Canals, Birmingham City University and the Accessible Waterways Association – will gather data…
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Chip pan fire on the Grand Union

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July 14, 2026

River Canal Rescue was recently called out to the Grand Union canal, Wolverton area, to raise what was left of a narrowboat, following a chip pan fire. During the re-float, a witness to the incident told RCR engineers he went to help the owner, who was unhurt. No pets were onboard. RCR managing director, Stephanie…
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Rapid response reopens Lock 5 at Camp Hill Locks in Birmingham

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July 6, 2026

Waterways charity, Canal & River Trust, has been able to quickly restore navigation at Lock 5 on the Camp Hill Locks, part of the Grand Union Canal in Birmingham, after a damaged lock gate temporarily brought boat movements to a halt. The issue was reported when a lock gate became dislodged after the lock gate…
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Milton Keynes clean-up collects seven tonnes of rubbish

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June 15, 2026

THE IWA’s Milton Keynes branch held its annual Canal Clean-up across the 10-mile stretch through Milton Keynes from Fenny Stratford to Cosgrove on April 10/11. The usual mix of discarded items were found, including several supermarket trolleys, six tyres, four electric hire scooters, three bicycles, an outboard motor, a plastic barrel, a motor bike frame,…
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Cosgrove Canal Festival and Crafts Fair returns this July

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May 22, 2026

The annual Cosgrove Canal Festival and Crafts Fair will this year be held over the weekend of the weekend or 18th-19th July 2026. This event is organised by the Buckingham Canal Society to raise awareness and funding for the restoration of the Buckingham Arm or the Grand Union canal. There will be trading and historic display…
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£1.3m canal repairs see hand-built lock gates installed on Grand Union Canal in Leicestershire

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April 2, 2026

Major Canal & River Trust works are under way in Leicestershire to replace ageing lock gates and protect historic waterways from climate pressures. Leicestershire’s waterways are undergoing major maintenance and preservation work to keep them navigable as part of a £1.3 million repairs and restoration programme. The Canal & River Trust is replacing lock gates…
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£220k project to restore historic water-saving canal engineering at Hanwell

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February 20, 2026

Work underway on a Historic England-funded project to restore 200-year-old side ponds at the Hanwell Flight of Locks in West London. The initiative follows a year of navigation closures caused by drought and climate change and focuses on locks 94 and 95. The scheme is supported by Historic England, the Inland Waterways Association and the…
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RESTORATION WORK DONE on historic lifting bridge

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August 27, 2025

A LIFTING bridge designed by Robert Stephenson and built in 1834 to carry a railway line over the Grand Union Canal has been restored. Robin Jones reports… The bridge is one of the few remaining examples of Victorian engineer Stephenson’s early work near the dawn of the steam age so is of immense historic importance.…
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REPAIRS MADE: To bank washed away in floods

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Web Editor

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November 9, 2024

Lucy Wood reports… MAJOR repairs to a section of canal bank that was washed away by winter floods in Leicester have been completed. The Canal & River Trust has repaired and strengthened a 100-metre section of the Grand Union Canal bank, which was severely damaged when floodwater from the non-navigable River Soar, which runs parallel,…
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CHARITY WALK: 100 miles along the Grand Union!

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Mark Lancaster

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August 27, 2024

The 100-mile Grand Union Ramble is in aid of two great charities and will take place from the 19th to the 22nd of September. One of the walkers, George Kelly, told Towpath Talk: “After last year’s success with “The Great Commute”, we’re taking to The Grand Union Canal for 2024’s 100+ miler. Going from Braunston…
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‘More fun than going to the gym’

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Scootering Web Editor

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May 20, 2024

By Janet Richardson A FAMILIAR sight at the Braunston Historic Boat Rally in late June, the iconic pair Nuneaton and Brighton are still at work. They are owned and operated by the Narrow Boat Trust, a volunteer-led charity whose objective is to maintain the historic boats and demonstrate how they were operated commercially together in…
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Market Harborough towpath reopened

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December 29, 2023

A SECTION of historic canal towpath in Market Harborough has reopened after the Canal & River Trust completed the latest phase of improvements. These will make it easier for people to access the health and well-being benefits of spending time at the Grand Union Canal. The trust, working in partnership with Sustrans and Harborough District…
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Canal-bank seats for the passer-by

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Web Editor

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April 20, 2023

Words and photos: Tim Coghlan TWO benches have been installed beside the Grand Union Canal at Stoke Bruerne, Northamptonshire, to commemorate the lives of two of its well-known canal and community activists, David Blagrove (1937-2016) and Roy Sears (1945-2018). The funds to purchase the benches and pay for their installation came from the David Blagrove…
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Canalside art trail tackles tagging and antisocial behaviour

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Web Editor

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November 2, 2022

A stretch of urban towpath on the Grand Union Canal has been transformed by a new canalside art trail created by waterways and wellbeing charity Canal & River Trust. The project in Alperton, North London, builds on research showing that community street art discourages antisocial behaviour and tagging, and was made possible by support from…
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