Volunteers desperately needed to 'keep canals alive'

Published: Friday, 24 January 2025

A TELEVISION presenter is fronting a campaign for volunteers for the Canal & River Trust.

Television presenter Ranvir Singh, who is fronting the campaign, of the trust that is calling on volunteers to protect wildlife like otters, ducks and water voles by helping to maintain the canal network, Janet Friend reports.

VolunteerVegHe repeats that there are almost 1.2m people in Yorkshire who live within a 10 minutes walk of a waterway and could help nature by undertaking jobs like weeding and litter picks that there are 320 miles of canals in Yorkshire and the North East but recent bad weather has brought down hundreds of trees and sections of towpath have also been washed away, according to the organisation, and adds:

Make a difference

"We are calling on people to make a difference by volunteering to do something local towards a global priority.

"Their original function has since been replaced by leisure uses and they have become important wildlife habitats for species such as kingfisher and heron. With volunteers' support, donating their time, knowledge, and skills, we are better able to turn the tide and keep our canals available for local communities and for wildlife.

"These precious places, with their narrowboats and history, are at the heart of numerous communities, bringing nature and free-to-access green space to the doorsteps of millions."

The trust is holding a series of volunteer welcome sessions and training from February across Yorkshire.