Restoring a Waterway for the 21st Century
A resource for the local community and a habitat for wildlife
You may not have heard of the Wilts & Berks Canal as it has been derelict for nearly a century. There are ambitious plans to bring the waterway back to life.
Its called the Wilts & Berks because it is said that a lazy draughtsman could not be bothered to write in full the county names!
Swindon is mid point of the waterway which linked the Thames at Abingdon with the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham.
A further link was made from Swindon to the Thames & Severn Canal at Cricklade (The North Wilts Canal). There were also branches to Chippenham, Calne, Longcot (near Shrivenham) and Wantage. The waterway now is located in Wiltshire Swindon and Oxfordshire since Local Government boundary changes in the 1970's.
The Wilts and Berks Trust is committed to returning this historic waterway to a navigable state. The canal will restore an important link in the national waterways network, but the project will be part of the green infrastructure of the region, creating connections between existing wildlife habitats and creating aquatic and wetland habitats for endangered species.
Working with our partners we aim to restore the canal route, provide wildlife habitats, cycleways and routes for walkers along the restored towpath.
The Trust would like your help to complete this exciting project- please explore this website to find out more.
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