A MAJOR milestone has been reached in the restoration of the Lichfield Canal.
Volunteers from the Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust (LHCRT) have completed 85 metres of the route at Gallows Reach off Tamworth Road.
It means the restored section can hold water for the first time.
The milestone follows the award of £200,000 of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding from Lichfield District Council to support Phase 2 of the Gallows Reach restoration project.
The money is supporting essential materials needed to restore a 225-metre section, including sheet piling for the canal sides and a watertight lining for the canal bed.
The completed 85-metre section has now been bunded to retain water, marking an important step towards bringing the wider stretch of canal back into use.
Cllr Alex Farrell, Lichfield District Council's cabinet member for housing and the Local Plan, said:
"It's fantastic to come back to Gallows Reach and see just how much progress has been made since we announced our £200,000 investment.
"This is exactly what Community Infrastructure Levy funding should be about – taking money generated through development and investing it back into infrastructure that benefits our communities.
"What's particularly special about this project is the huge amount of time, skill and dedication being given by the Trust's volunteers. Our funding is helping them turn an incredibly ambitious vision into reality, and seeing water in this section of the canal is a brilliant milestone.
"I’d like to thank everyone involved and I'm looking forward to seeing the restoration continue to progress."
As well as contributing towards the trust's long-term ambition of reconnecting the Lichfield Canal to Huddlesford Junction, the Gallows Reach project will create a traffic-free pedestrian route linking the new communities at Cricket Lane and St John’s Grange.
The restoration will also deliver new habitats for wildlife, enhance biodiversity and provide an improved green corridor for residents and visitors. Derek Lord, LHCRT planning and technical trustee, said:
"This funding has been a fantastic boost for the project, and we are extremely grateful to Lichfield District Council for their support.
"Completing and watering the initial section shows exactly how this investment is delivering real, visible progress, bringing us another step closer to reconnecting the Lichfield Canal to Huddlesford Junction.
"With this first milestone now reached, we’ve already begun the next stages of restoration at Gallows Reach."
