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Category: NN Chairman's Column
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If only the trust would listen

Stella Ridgeway responds to the letter to boaters from Richard Parry

Why is it boaters feel so disenfranchised by CRT? Why is it that CRT staff, who are paid to enrol people on the towpath as Friends, now don’t bother to approach boaters? The constant PR push over the last couple of years celebrates initiatives that rarely involve boats. Instead, walkers, cyclists, anglers and canoeists are targeted and welcomed in increasing numbers - come in, it’s a free resource. The latest rebranding only cost £60k, honestly! New expensive signs have sprung up, seemingly overnight, alongside the canals and are directed at those who already know where the canal is – not the 7 million who supposedly don’t.  Millions spent on new cycle routes, walkways, canoe routes ‒ yes it’s grant funded, but where are the grants to repair the listed locks and bridges?

Read more: If only the trust would listen

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Category: Boater Safety
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Crime prevention

The Regents Canal and surrounding area is experiencing increased robberies and burglaries and the Bow West Safer Neighbourhood Team, CRT and the Metropolitan Police have issued the following advice to boaters, which is applicable in any urban area:

Don’t make your boat attractive to thieves

Thieves are always on the lookout for easy targets.

Read more: Crime prevention

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Category: NN Editorials
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Editorial

From the Middle Level to the high seas

Editor, Peter Fellows has a diverse edition for Spring.

I was pleased to see that CRT has suspended the sale of the freehold to Blowers Green Pumphouse (see January’s NABO News), but wish that the relevant advisory groups could review such proposals before they go ahead. CRT has published the results of its licensing consultation, reviewed by Mark Tizard. Most narrowboaters will have to pay about 5% more for their licences year-on-year, so the exercise was not exactly ‘revenue-neutral’ – at least not for boaters. Widebeam owners will have to pay more, but not as much as many feared. During the review, many boaters didn’t see the need for any changes, so with no majority agreement to change anything much, CRT can claim to have listened to its ‘customers’. However, it is difficult to see how the outcome will reduce CRT’s licensing costs, as the system now seems to be more complicated, rather than the intended simplification.

Read more: NABO News Editorial April 2018

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Category: NABO
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The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a new EU law that will come into effect on 25 May 2018, to replace the current Data Protection Act. It's the biggest overhaul of data protection legislation for over 25 years and it will introduce new requirements for how organisations process personal data. It means that we have to revalidate our permission from members to hold and use personal data, and also to communicate with them. We are now starting a campaign to address this law. All members who have given us an email address have been contacted, and those who rely on snail mail will be covered by NABO News distributed in May 18.

We need all members to take action to accept the new requirements by logging in to the web site and amend their profile, or writing to us confirming acceptance.

The main changes are:

  1. We have to get separate and specific agreement to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Conditions from the members. We cannot assume just because members pay that they agree.
  2. We have to record the date and way we get that agreement, either on the web site or by correspondence.
  3. We have to provide the means to delete personal data. Members can do this themselves on line or can request the membership team to do so.

To cover the regulation, we have updated the Privacy Policy and this was approved by Council in April. You can read it here. We have not changed the Terms and Conditions and you can read them here.