Banana skins
THERE used to be a series on television called 'The likely lads' which gave a light hearted look at the life of two lads living in the North East, writes Mick Fitzgibbons.
I suppose it was the male equivalent of 'The Liver Birds', where two young ladies presented a light hearted look at life in the North West. A few years after the 'The Likely Lads' series finished, the same couple 'Bob and Terry' were resurrected in a new series called 'Whatever happened to the Likely Lads.'
National Trust for the Inland Waterways
There are some parallels that can be drawn with the Canal & River Trust. Top billing was given to the creation of the 'National Trust for the Inland Waterways'. Now I suppose it's time to ask whatever happened to the 'National Trust for the Inland Waterways': the promised land, bright new and shiny, which was predicted and promoted as the future. However, there are not many parallels that can be drawn for CaRT when compared with the National Trust, which is a successful organisation led and promoted by the enthusiasm of its members.
The first major problem was that CaRT was created as a trust. Which unlike almost every other large charitable organisations, was deliberately created without a membership. So rather than recruit the thousands of boaters, the Trust went on a tangent to recruit people with little interest in the canals, to be found walking up and down the high street. The graffiti so to speak was on the wall. The Trust in its current guise as a non member organisation has proved to be, not fit for purpose. One which is long past its best sell-by date.
So whatever did happen to the National Trust for the Inland Waterways?
Banana skins
The first wonderful idea (banana skin) was the transfer 'lock stock and barrel' of the old British Waterways management team, under the guise of a supposed 'transitional team', in place until the recruitment of a new team of talented individuals with experience of the charitable sector could be recruited. Now, unexpectedly who was it that was recruited. Well gosh, it was the old British Waterways team, which was recruited. With a collective experience of the third sector that totalled a mind boggling zero, nada, zilch! The tarnish started to take hold of the family silver.
Then as the chuggers (Charitable Muggers) that had been employed by other charitable organisations, earned themselves a repugnant reputation with the public on the high street. CaRT bought into the wonderful idea (banana skin) and the much vaunted chuggers chugged the high streets on behalf of CaRT. The chugsters achieved the distinction of going bust! The Trust was almost friendless and the family silver started to look more like pewter than silver.
Waterways Partnerships
Not to worry, the Waterways Partnerships, another wonderful idea (banana skin) would be the saviour of the fund raising activities. The Partnerships would take up the challenge and the role of fund raisers extraordinaire. Not only that, but they would start to raise up to £800,000 a year each, to replenish the Trust's dwindling coffers. The first problem was that someone forgot to tell the partnerships what their role was. The running total after running costs is a magnificent and mind boggling zero, nada, zilch! Even the pewter started to tarnish faster than ever.
I could go on about the stunning way that the maintenance backlog has been cleared or the long list of investment successes is coining dosh, like it's growing on banana trees. Unfortunately there are zero, nada, zilch of note! I would love to wax lyrical about the remarkable about-turn from the bad old days under British Waterways. Unfortunately whatever shine remained has long gone.
Bright New World
Under the chairmanship of Tony Hales the much vaunted and promised bright new world for the inland waterways, the National Treasure, of a 2,200 mile linear water-park has been a lack lustre flop of epic proportions. The family silver—what family silver?
So Tony, it's on your watch—whatever did happen to the 'National Trust for the Inland Waterways'?