Strong support for Ashby Canal switch

Plans to involve local charity set to move step nearer

A county council move to transfer part of the Ashby Canal route between Snarestone and Measham in north-west Leicestershire to a local charity organisation looks to be moving a step nearer.

Cabinet members will be asked later this week (Friday, 13 Sep) to approve an approach to Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers for her consent to transfer the ownership to the Ashby Canal Association (ACA), following a six-week consultation which showed widespread support for the proposal.

Since 1994, the authority has led the restoration work on the stretch of canal, with a 500-metre section from Snarestone to the new bridge 62 completed in 2015.

However, due to limited third-party funding and its own resource restraints, the council wants to transfer the ownership so further restoration of the canal can be progressed.

 
We’ve got an association which is willing to take on the responsibility for delivering this part of the canal, and there is backing through the consultation, so this is all moving in the right direction

Person:Blake Pain, county council cabinet member for environment and transport
 
More than 140 people responded to the six-week consultation, and 96 per cent of respondents strongly agreed with the transfer of ownership proposals.

The council also asked for views on any alternative suggestions it could pursue around the canal restoration.

Some of the suggestions, says the report, can still be explored once there is agreement on the transfer. These include wider involvement of the community in supporting the work of the ACA.