on the Welsh section of the canal to be restored by the Shropshire Union Canal Society. In 2003, the section from Queen's Head to Gronwen Wharf was reopened opening the canal through the village of Maesbury Marsh. The section from Gronwen Wharf to Redwith Bridge was filled with water in October 2007. Rare flora and fauna were accommodated by the construction of an off-line nature reserve on land leased by British Waterways for 50 years. The cost of the reserve added an extra £250,000 to the projected cost and this was partially funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and EU Interreg funds. Restoration then started on the section onwards to Pryce's Bridge. Rebuilding of the channel involved the laying of over 40,000 concrete bricks and the use of a Bentonite membrane. The refurbished channel was opened on 19 July 2014 by Owen Paterson, the MP for North Shropshire, but because there is no winding hole at the end of it, the limit of navigation remained at Gronwen Wharf for most boats. In 2007, restoration of Crickheath Wharf was started by the Shropshire Union Canal Society though in 2008, work was postponed due to land ownership issues. At present restoration efforts continue to bring the navigation to Crickheath Wharf where a winding hole will be located. After the award of a National Lottery grant in 2016, it is planned that the canal will be restored to and including the Crickheath winding hole by 2020. Restoration is being carried out by a partnership of the Montgomery Waterway Restoration Trust and the national Canal & River Trust (who own the canal and are its navigation authority). As of 2017, Gronwen remains the limit of navigation for larger powered craft on the northern section of the canal which is connected to the Llangollen Canal and the wider Canal & River Trust network at Frankton Junction. A very short section of navigable canal exists in Llanymynech and a separate longer navigable section operates in the Welshpool area; however these two sections are not connected to any other navigable canal and are therefore 'isolated'. A joint bid by Powys County Council and the Canal and RIver Trust for funding to further restore the Canal and reconnect it to the national canal network at Ellesmere, Shropshire, succeeded in its aim when in October 2021 the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, announced as part of his annual