Capturing knowledge

Chair, Stella Ridgway, is concerned that CRT’s redundancies will result in experience being lost.

Happy New Year, although tinged with sadness as we report the death of our Vice Chair, Paul Howland. He will be sadly missed by all who knew him; his knowledge was always welcome and his advice given freely and always useful. This leaves a place open on NABO Council and, therefore, if you would like to volunteer, please let us know.

I have had a quiet few months, although the Trust hasn’t. It announced the next lot of redundancies just before Christmas and the outcomes should be known before the start of summer. We wait to see the impact of these and how many people will opt for redundancy. But, potentially, this could result in the loss of people with decades of experience of working on the waterways. NABO realises the need for these redundancies, but we hope that the potential loss of knowledge is being captured. The meetings with the North West and North East Waterway Directors have been postponed until next month, and, although this is not ideal, we realise that people are concerned about options and jobs. However, it is encouraging that these meetings are being held and maybe it is true that the Trust wants to listen to boaters and capture the knowledge in that way.

In this issue of NABO News, there are details of the BSS announcement that CO alarms will need to be installed on boats with effect from April 2019. You need to install one, even if your BSS inspection is not due. Fit alarms that meet BS EN 50291-2, which are best suited for boats. This is to keep both the owners and other boat occupants safe.

I will attend a Canal and River Trust Council meeting in Manchester in March and the topics for discussion are cyclists and shared space on towpaths, and the future of boating. Your feedback on either topic would be invaluable.

I hope that the rest of your winter is hassle-free and, for those without a home mooring, enjoy the peace of winter boating – I certainly miss snow-boating. All the best for 2019 to everyone.