Lichfield Canal, Cappers Lane displacement
Awarded: £75,000
Region: Central
Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust Limited is a registered charity that is located in Staffordshire.
This project is restoring the derelict channel west of Lichfield Canal’s first lock as a new reservoir fed from Darnford Brook. HS2 funding is providing 60% of the funding for the project with 40% being provided through the European Regional Development Fund, via Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP, to improve the condition of the canal for the community as a wildlife habitat.
The HS2 CEF has funded the installation of the new pumping equipment to raise water from the brook, with an overflow return arrangement to keep the restored channel in water to attract and benefit wildlife. The project is putting a derelict part of the canal back in water with attendant ecological habitat improvements.
History of Lichfield Canal
Opened in 1797, the seven-mile Ogley Locks section of Wyrley and Essington Canal linked the Birmingham Canal Navigations with the 1772 Coventry Canal at Huddlesford Junction but was legally abandoned in 1954. Since 1990, Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust Limited has gradually undertaken extensive volunteer-led work to restore available parts as the Lichfield Canal. In 2012, LHCRT bought a disconnected section of the abandoned canal alongside Cappers Lane, including the first upstream heritage lock to the dry channel towards Darnford Lane and beyond.
Ecological Enhancements
Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council are providing professional ecological guidance and assistance to ensure the greatest benefit for local wildlife and the community can be achieved in liaison with Lichfield District Council’s Biodiversity Action Plan objectives. Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust has also designed a nature trail along the canal with signage with ecological descriptions so the public can learn about the local environment and wildlife.
“Our Trust is grateful for the grant of £75,000 from HS2’s Community and Environment Fund. This will provide a sustainable and attractive natural environment in water for wildlife habitats as an integral feature in restoring the Lichfield Canal. This area will be freely accessible for all people to enjoy”
Carole Mills – Chair of Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust Limited
