Communications Update
20th May 2016
News Round up
The Trust’s Great Nature Watch got under way this week with nationwide media coverage:Campaigns manager Sarah Burns and ecologist Chantal Dave were interviewed live on BBC Breakfast TV (17/5/16)
National ecologist Mark Robinson gave a great interview to BBC Radio 5 Live’s breakfast programme (17/5/16). Mark also gave an amazing 20 interviews in a row to regional BBC and commercial radio stations across the country
A nice example of the fun broadcasters had with the story is this piece on Fun Kids Radio
John Sergeant’s Barging Round Britain (13/5/16) featured the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal: ‘one of the oldest and prettiest canals in Britain’
The Sun (15/5/16) looks ahead to half term and includes boating on the Oxford Canal amongst its ‘Top 10 Kids’ Half Term Fun’
Likewise, the Independent website (17/5/16) includes a canal boat holidaying amongst its ‘5 last-minute family escapes’
Volunteer leader Max Ward hosted BBC Radio Somerset and BBC Radio Bristol (15/5/16) on the Bridgwater & Taunton Canal for their programme ‘Clueless’
The BBC website, BBC Radio Gloucestershire and BBC regional TV (13/5/16) reported the removal of three cars from the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal
Volunteer leader Alice Kay gave a fantastic wide-ranging interview (engaging, knowledgeable and enthusiastic) to BBC Radio Lancashire (9/5/16) about the recruitment of welcome station volunteers, John Sergeant’s TV series and the delights of the canals in general
Volunteer lock keeper Paul Roache gave a great interview to BBC Radio WM (13/5/16) about lock keeping the wider role of volunteers on the canal
BBC Radio Lancashire (16/5/16) reported the launch of the Trust’s awards to mark the 200th anniversary of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal
BBC Look North reported live from Bingley Five Rise locks (17/5/16) to interview the lock keepers Richard Moor, Nick Stead and John Lobley who told viewers how proud they are to have beaten off national competition to be named Volunteer Lock Keepers of the Year. They were also interviewed live on BBC Radio Leeds drive time programme (17/5/16)
ITV London (18/5/16) filmed at our eel pass on the River Lea. We will be taking a freelancer for The Times and local news photographers there next Tuesday
And finally, for those visiting the continent, you may spot some nice canal coverage in the Eurostar magazine (May)
In social media:
· Great Nature Watch has had a great start on social media since its launch on Tuesday. The top tweet reached 5,000 people and was retweeted by @Team4Nature300 who have over 63k followers
· We shared BBC Breakfast's Great Nature Watch video (featuring Tim Muffett at Hanwell Lock Flight) with our Facebook audience and it has been viewed 1,347 times by our audience (7,485 in total) and reached over 5,000 people
· The story about the three cars removed from Gloucester & Sharpness Canal was top for engagement on Twitter this week, people engaged with the tweet 245 times (double the average) and it reached 3,539 people
And coming up next week:
· We’re promoting a public consultation on the exciting plans for the Roundhouse in Birmingham
· We’ll be telling the media about a free family activity day along the canal in Aylesbury on 5 June
· BBC Points West will interview the team working on a remotely operated bridge on the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal
· We’ll be promoting an open meeting on the Kennet & Avon Canal, inviting people to drop in and give their ideas on how to improve the waterway
· There is a Share the Space eventon Wednesdayon the Grand Union Canal at Rickmansworth
· There’s due to be a feature in this weekend’s Sunday Express (Travel Section) about the journey along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal in its bicentenary year
· On Monday we’ll issue a press release about the Dance on Water project – part of the Trust’s Arts on the Waterways Programme
The Great Nature Watch
Take a trip to your local canal, river, reservoir or lake and record what you see there. It’s a fun activity to do with the family and will help us to monitor and protect the wide variety of precious wildlife that the waterways are home to.
This year we're calling on everyone to ‘Stop, Look and Listen’ to what’s happening around them following ourownsurvey results, which show surprising gaps in people’s nature knowledge.
We've been working with the renowned Wildlife Sound Recording Society to create a series of nature noises and challenge people to identify them as part of our Wildlife Ear and Eye Q test. Surveying toddlers to OAPs, the results showed that 25% of parents and 30% of children could not identify the sound a duck makes.
We also found that23% of parents and nearly a third of children thought that ducks have yellow feathers, perhaps the result of children’s TV programmes such as Peppa Pig.
Findings also show that 76% of parents believe that they are less knowledgeable about nature than the previous generation with 68% of parents also believing that their children are less knowledgeable about nature than they were at their age.
When put to the test the gap in wildlife knowledge between parents and their children is actually surprisingly close, however the gap between grandparents and their adult children and grandchildren is much bigger.
Dr Mark Robinson, national ecologist for the Canal & River Trust, says: “It’s a shame to see that people’s knowledge of nature is declining, but this can easily be reversed.
For more information, take part in a wildlife quiz and to download the Great Nature Watch app click here
Events
· Over and under the hill at Stoke Bruerne
Leaving from outside the museum at Stoke Bruerne, this is an exciting heritage boat and walk event.
22nd May 2016
9:30am - 12:00pm
Canal Museum, Stoke Bruerne
3 Bridge Rd
Stoke Bruerne
Towcester
NN12 7SE
Join a boat trip through the tunnel on trip boat Charlie with a commentary about the construction of the nearly two mile long 200 year old canal tunnel, enjoy refreshments whilst viewing the murals at Blisworth Tunnel Hut, then walk back over the top of Blisworth Hill to Stoke Bruerne with walks guides who will point out features of interest relating to the canal and its construction along the way.
Suitable clothing and stout footwear are recommended.
Prices
The cost of the event is £6, £4 for children
Booking
Advance booking is required via Stoke Bruerne Canal Museum, telephone 01604 862229 or email as capacity on Charlie is limited.
The boat and walk is being organised by Stoke Bruerne Canal Partnership in conjunction with Stoke Bruerne Boat Company and neighbouring Blisworth Canal Partnership, who, as well as providing the refreshments, will be running subsidised trips for Blisworth community organisations in the opposite direction, as part of their pledge to connect people with Blisworth Tunnel and the local canal.
· Crick Boat Show 2016
Crick is back for 2016 and tickets are now on sale. As well as being the biggest inland waterways festival, meaning more boats, exhibitors, and fun - we'll also be celebrating the 300th anniversary of the birth of canal pioneer James Brindley.details
28th May 2016 to 30th May 2016
Crick Marina
Grand Union Canal
Crick,
Northants,
NN6 7SQ
The Crick Boat Show gets bigger every year. Join the crowds and enjoy a weekend of top quality entertainment, music, performers - not to mention hundreds of boats to admire.
It's also a big celebration for James Brindley, 300 years since he was born. An innovative Brindley (1716-1772) was one of the early canal engineers who worked on some of the first canals of the modern era. He played an essential role in shaping the way canals were built during the Industrial Revolution.
For more information visit: http://www.crickboatshow.com/index.html
Buy tickets here
· Guided walk at Weaver's Triangle Centre
Get your walking boots on take on a guided walk in Burnley.
29th May 2016
2:15pm - 4:15pm
Leeds & Liverpool Canal, Bicentenaryddress
85 Manchester Road
Burnley
BB11 1JZ
For more informationemail
Visit the website for a full calendar of events over the coming weeks & months
Do you want to know which is the longest tunnel or the shortest lock on our canal & river network?
We have a dedicated page on our website just for fascinating facts about canal & rivers. Why not swot up and impress or bore your friends or be that person with the obscure answer at the local pub quiz! Click here to start.
Barging Round Britain – Series 2
Barging Round Britain with John Sergeant continues on ITV, with episode 5 on Friday 20th May at 8pm.
In episode five,John Sergeant travels along the Oxford Canal, meandering through the heart of the countryside until he reaches the River Thames in Oxford.
Selima ‘Champions’
Selima ‘Champions’ are now in place to support the roll out of our Selima online volunteer expenses system. The team has been set up to provide help to both task managers and volunteers to use the new expenses payment process, from setting up profiles to submitting and approving expense claims and/or troubleshoot any problems.
To find out more and to contact your local Selima Champion please email