The 2020 Annual Restoration Conference, jointly organised by the Inland Waterways Association and Canal & River Trust, is taking place online.
The main conference day was on Saturday 10th October. A six week programme of webinar follows the main event.
The conference brought a focus to governance, volunteer recruitment, including the recruitment and management of a more diverse volunteer base and a series of technical and informative workshops. Workshop technical topics include the environmental changes to be introduced by legislation around biodiversity net gain and dealing with utilities on site. We have tried to attract as many speakers from beyond IWA and CRT and attendees should experience a fantastic insight to the important topics facing restorations today.
Restoration
Waterway Restoration Conference
The 2020 Annual Restoration Conference, jointly organised by the Inland Waterways Association and Canal & River Trust, is taking place online.
The main conference day was on Saturday 10th October. A six week programme of webinar follows the main event.
The conference brought a focus to governance, volunteer recruitment, including the recruitment and management of a more diverse volunteer base and a series of technical and informative workshops. Workshop technical topics include the environmental changes to be introduced by legislation around biodiversity net gain and dealing with utilities on site. We have tried to attract as many speakers from beyond IWA and CRT and attendees should experience a fantastic insight to the important topics facing restorations today.
Details
Restoration Conference
10th October, 10am - 1pm
Webinar Series
Thursdays, 12:30pm
Keynote Sessions – 10th October 2020
Good Governance – getting it right
Speaker: Sarah O’Grady, IWA Chief Executive
What can restoration group trustees do to implement good governance? What are the key issues facing boards and what are the specific issues facing leaders in our sector?
The power of heritage volunteering
Speaker: Becky Benson Volunteer Manager, Birmingham Museums Trust
Survey data concerning the heritage volunteering sector will be shared with case studies being used to demonstrate resilience building in volunteer led teams.
Connecting with diverse audiences
Speaker: David Akinsanya, Ex BBC Journalist and Public Speaker
David a boater of over 20 years will discuss his experience of being a BAME individual living on the canals, and the importance of having a diverse volunteer base.
Q&A with our panel of experts
Ask our experts any questions about governance, volunteering, recruitment and diversity or any other issues brought to light during the day.
Webinar Series – Thursdays, 12:30pm
Speaker: Liz Shaw, NLHF
The National Lottery Heritage Fund is one of the main grant funders for waterways restoration projects. This workshop, led by Liz Shaw, a member of the Heritage Fund regional engagement team, will offer top tips and guidance for completing a good funding application. Liz will also touch on the current funding climate, updates from the National Heritage Lottery Fund and will be available for a Q&A session at the end.
Speaker: Peter Walker, Canal & River Trust
So – your restoration is progressing well and you’re now thinking of connecting it up to the national waterway network and moving from restoration mode to operation mode. You may be considering some form of working relationship with Canal & River Trust. In this workshop Peter will run through some key considerations when deciding on your preferred option, including how to formally connect to the Trust’s network, the Trust’s view on acquiring restored waterways, technical and operational requirements including boat licensing and enforcement, plus things to consider should you wish to own and manage your restored waterway.
Speaker: Alex Melson, IWA
New regulations mean that all developments going through the English planning system will need to achieve Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG), otherwise planning permission will be refused. BNG is an approach to development that leaves the natural environment in a measurably better state with the outcome being a net gain in biodiversity. This workshop explores the principles of BNG, a mitigation hierarchy and brings the topic to life with some relevant construction based case studies.
Speaker: James Long, Community & Youth Events Coordinator & Carrie House, Project Officer, Canal & River Trust
Successfully engaging young people can be a challenge: but doing it well can make a significant impact for your project, the young people themselves, and the wider community. In this session attendees will hear about a range of projects Canal & River Trust have led and supported, including case studies, best practice and ideas that restoration volunteers can takeaway and use in their project.
Speaker: Alison Smedley, Campaigns & Public Affairs Manager, IWA
Campaigning and building relationships with your local MP and authorities can be a long term but highly rewarding activity. What should you concentrate your time on and how can you deliver the most successful outcomes?
Speaker: Wayne Cahill, SHE Lead Regional Civil Engineer, Kier
Ascertaining the location of utilities on your project through service searches and CAT scans (including the limitations of this approach), the protection of your volunteers and utilities plus the time and cost implications of diverting them will all be covered. If there is time the session will address the support of underground services when working close to them.
