The aims of the Trust are to promote the full restoration and appropriate development of the Chesterfield Canal, and to campaign for the construction of the Rother Valley Link, a navigable waterway to join the Chesterfield Canal to the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation.
33 miles of the canal is a Green Flag area. The towpath is used by tens of thousands of walkers and cyclists every year. We carry about 7,000 people per year on our trip boats. We have over 200 volunteers, at least 100 of whom volunteer at least once a month.
We will be hosting the National Trailboat Festival on May 29th, 30th and 31st 2021 at Staveley Town Basin and our Walking Festival between 11th and 19th September 2021.
Amongst other activities, we run four trip boats - the Seth Ellis in Retford, the Hugh Henshall in Worksop, Madeline at Hollingwood Hub and John Varley in Chesterfield. We own a 91-year-old ex-working boat called Python that does vegetation cutting and canal clean-ups. Some volunteers have built Dawn Rose, the first new Cuckoo boat for 100 years, using traditional methods and hand tools. This does towing demonstrations with a horse called Charlie. The Trust’s promotional trailer, the James Brindley, travels far and wide informing people about the canal and there are Volunteer Work Parties on the canal every Thursday and Sunday. Hollingwood Hub, which includes Katey’s Coffee Shop, houses the Trust’s office.
In 2017, the Trust received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.
