Our Mission

Canal Boat is a community-led initiative that activates underused stretches of London’s canal network to improve health, well-being, and social connection. We work in partnership with schools, youth groups, community organisations, and local residents to deliver performances, workshops, and events that bring people together through shared experiences on the water.

By helping communities overcome barriers created by overlapping authorities and outdated regulations, we aim to make the entire canal network — not just high-profile areas like King’s Cross or Paddington — a vibrant, accessible space for all.

About us

Your Canal Boat, CIC recognizes the astonishing cultural and environmental heritage preserved in London’s Industrial Revolution-era canal network … and connects Londoners to it. We identify suitable places for gatherings at canalside locations and activate them with fun educational programming. We provide opportunities for residents to work with Borough government, the Canal and River Trust — and each other — to become stewards of these priceless neighborhood resources, forging vital community connections (always good!), and Covid-secure venues (in event of future need to resume socially distanced gatherings).

Our Story

Your Canal Boat is a community-forward initiative that identifies overlooked canalside locations and demonstrates their potential as

potential as staging grounds for programs that improve health, well-being, and social connection. We work in partnership with schools, youth groups, community organisations, local residents—and anyone interested in leveraging the canal’s potential for improved health and well-being—to deliver performances, workshops, and events that bring people together through shared experiences on the water.

Our focus is on the Paddington Arm—from Paddington to Hayes—and the lower stretch of the original Grand Union Canal, from Uxbridge to Brentford. This area is rich in history, including the only flight of locks in the Greater London area at Hanwell, and some of its best fishing towards Uxbridge. Communities between these areas often require support in accessing and making full use of these sites. We aim to recruit some of them and make them custodians of the space, empowering them to activate and preserve these resources for the future.

From slow-paced running programs and music showcases to discussions and public forums on the future of the canal and a climate-changed world, our boat serves as a floating venue, community hub, and platform for local voices. We create opportunities for residents, voters, developers, Canal & River Trust officials, and borough representatives to meet face-to-face—not on Zoom or Teams, but in real places, beside real water.

We use events, performances, and floating markets to get people excited—to give them a chance to envision what the canal in their own backyard looks like transformed. We invite them to imagine their own projects and offer help with planning and risk assessments as needed. We guide residents and nonprofits through the thicket of overlapping jurisdictional entities that discourage wider, more frequent use of the canals, helping them navigate the system to bring their ideas to life.