The Inclined Plane Trust will be at:- The Waterways Festival 2011

Festival Patron - Harry Arnold MBE 

There will be so much to see and do on the banks of the Trent and Mersey Canal when Burton upon Trent hosts The Waterways Festival, previously known as the National Festival and Boat Show, from Friday 29^th to Sunday 31^st July 2011.

This new date is a change from the normal practice in recent years of holding it over the August Bank Holiday, and has come after significant consultation with exhibitors, attending public and IWA volunteers who are all vital to the staging of the event. The historic brewing town has been chosen for the second time to host the annual celebration, with up to 30,000 people expected to attend. The three day festival is an exciting and colourful extravaganza packed with an array of attractions all aimed at providing an educational and fun day out for all the family.

Around 350 boats, many decorated, will line up along the water’s edge. Heritage crafts will also feature strongly at the festival, with historic working boats on display. The event is renowned for its high quality entertainment and history lovers will be drawn to the major Viking battle re-enactment and living camp being staged by the world famous Regia Anglorum. With a reputation for vivid and dramatic entertainment, the Mikron Theatre Company will debut a new waterways show called Hell and High Water. There is much more to see, including live music, water activities and fairground rides.

The festival will also host up to 250 exhibitors so whether you’re interested in boats and chandlery or just wish to browse the many speciality stalls, including clothing, arts and crafts, jewellery and speciality food and drink, the choice is extensive. The event itself is organised entirely by a small army of volunteers gathered from canal enthusiasts and many from the local community of the host area. If you’d like to get involved and become a volunteer please contact Ann Mayall on 01488 682504.

Make sure you put the date of this national IWA event in your diary!

Advance tickets can be purchased online at www.thewaterwaysfestival.co.uk. Ticket prices: Single Day Adults £8 (On Gate £10), Single Day Concessions £7 (On Gate £8) and Three Day (day time only) Ticket £15 (On Gate £19). Children under 16 GO FREE when accompanied by an adult.

New Boat Building Book

Bob Hakewill started putting this book together as the History of Springer Engineering. He soon realised that Harborough’s boat building industry had never been recorded and the facts were slipping away along with the people who started the companies. Springer’s alone were responsible for over 3,000 boats, add Harborough Marine, and Fernie Steel and the influence of Harborough in the pleasure boat industry has been very substantial. They were not just canal boats either. This story includes boats built for the continental waterways, sea going boats and even a giant bottle which crossed the Atlantic.
I am very pleased that this book has been written. No doubt there will be some new information come out when people start to read it and we will be able to produce a revised version, but this is a first class addition to our range of publications.
Whilst Bob wrote most of the text there are contributions from several other people. This is a unique, well researched and very readable publication, and Bob has generously given us the rights so that we gain the profit.
The book is ring bound A4 with colour covers, with 56 internal pages on high quality gloss paper, which makes the internal pictures look good. It is priced like most of our books at £4.50 per copy. We can post a copy for you for £ 6.50 which includes second class postage and packing
go to the Foxton Inclined Plane Trust Web Site

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Foxton's Red Wheel

In the Picture L to R are James Clifton (British Waterways) Mike Beech (Foxton Inclined Plane Trust) Peter Osborn (Chairman Leics CC), Mr. Richard Everard OBE DL (Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Leics), Stuart Wilkinson (Chairman Transport Trust) Catherine Osborne (Leics CC Chairman’s Wife), Peter Stone (TT Trustee). 

On Monday the 4^th of April the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire  Mr Richard Everard OBE DL unveiled Foxton’s New Red Wheel Plaque. The Plaque, awarded by the Transport Trust commemorates the importance of Foxton Locks and the Inclined Plane in the history of British transport. It is one of only 26 awarded so far, but the web address on it offers hundreds of transport heritage sites that you may wish to visit, as well as giving more information about Foxton. And if you visit the web site before you leave home it will give some information about the site. http://www.transporttrust.com/index.html

         It was a big event with around 70 guests including the Chairman of LCC and his wife, a folk group and over 30 children. After tea in the museum, James Clifton representing British Waterways started the ball rolling, describing the partnership process which got us where we are today, and then Stuart Wilkinson from the Transport Heritage Trust explained the plaques and the importance of saving our transport history, in the hope of inspiring future generations to become engineers and do great things in the future.

The Transport Trust aims to increase support for transport preservation, acting as the hub of the transport preservation movement.

go to the Foxton Inclined Plane Web Site