HUDDERSFIELD BOATING COUPLE TRAPPED IN LOCK LIVING 'RED-TAPE NIGHTMARE'

Two full-time narrowboaters have described a nightmare few months of vandal attacks, broken engines, name-calling, a knifepoint robbery and problems with paperwork.

David Brook and Christine Lavin say they are currently 'marooned' on the canal beside Huddersfield University and unable to get to a new mooring between Slaithwaite and Marden on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

The couple claim they are being prevented from leaving by a lack of paperwork which is needed to get through a nearby lock which is currently locked and chained shut.

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David and Christine are worried they will be made homeless and lose their boats if they can't get out of their 'Catch 22' situation.

David, who has been a full-time narrowboater for seven years, says he cannot get a 'home mooring licence' because his boat doesn't have a working engine or a safety certificate. He says he needs to reach a secure mooring place to carry out repairs. He says he has applied for a home mooring licence but says it was rejected because he hasn't got a safety certificate.

Christine, a full-time narrowboater for three years, is in a similar situation as her boat's engine is also broken. They have been at their current location for seven weeks. Christine applied for a home mooring licence but was rejected because she overstayed at her last location.

The couple have had a difficult few months following vandal attacks while moored behind the Cummins factory on St Andrew's Road, Huddersfield. They say they have been branded 'water gipsies' and been subjected to harassment, vandal attacks and a knifepoint robbery.

And David said he was towed out of Aspley Marina amid claims that his narrowboat was attracting rats. He said: "There's loads of rats down there but it has got nothing to do with my boat."

David, 66, a retired carpenter originally from Wakefield, has called on the Canal & River Trust to help resolve their current situation. He said: "I'm totally depressed and seething that I can't just get through the lock to the mooring. What's the problem?"

David said all he wanted was a 'peaceful life' but the current situation was getting him down. He added: "It just feels like we are being persecuted...if they force us off this canal we are homeless."

Christine, 51, a singer who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following a violent attack in 2000, said: "I have PTSD and it's triggered every day. I am getting depressed."

Both David and Christine say they hope to use barge poles and ropes to reach Slaithwaite, eight miles away, but first they need the paperwork and permission to pass through the chained 1E lock.

A spokesperson for the Canal & River Trust said: "We welcome all boaters onto our canals, and we manage our waterways safely and fairly for all the 35,000 boats on the network. We do all we can to support those facing serious difficulties and have a welfare support team who help boaters who are facing financial or other challenges.

"To navigate on our canals, a boat must be licensed which also ensures it meets requirements to keep everyone safe. And to licence a boat, the owner must either declare to continuously cruise, requiring them to be a constant journey, or have a home mooring to keep their boat. The moorings in question at Slaithwaite are at full capacity so it isn’t an option to declare that as a mooring.

"The Trust operates assisted passage through Lock 1E on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to help with water management along this stretch of the waterway. We are keen to rectify the situation with boaters, but until their craft can be licensed it would be inappropriate for the Trust to allow access through the lock."

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2024-07-04T04:11:51Z dg43tfdfdgfd