BW CHARITY OBJECTIVES - FIRST DRAFT
A first draft of the possible charitable objectives for the New Waterways Charity (NWC) was presented at the British Waterways Annual Meeting on 2 December 2010. Charitable objectives are the legal definition of what the charity is about and what it will do. In the draft, the purposes of the NWC are stated as: To own operate and manage Inland Waterways in the UK for public benefit . . . for navigation, for recreation or other leisure-time pursuits of the public in the interests of social welfare with a view to improving their conditions of life, and for the improvement of commerce and industry generally. To protect and conserve sites, objects and buildings of archaeological, architectural, engineering or historic interest on, by or associated with the Inland Waterways of the UK. To further the conservation and enhancement of the natural beauty of the Inland Waterways and the conservation of flora, fauna and geological or physiographical features of special interest on, by or associated with the Inland Waterways. To promote encourage undertake and assist in the restoration of the Inland Waterways (whether or not owned managed or operated by it) for the public benefit. To educate the public about the Inland Waterways, their history, development, use and operation by all appropriate means including the provision of museums. The cause of the proposed charity is stated as: NWC exists to protect and promote our inland waterway network and to ensure that our unique waterway heritage will always be a valued part of local landscapes and communities. BRANCH TO ATTEND IWA SEMINAR: On 22 January, IWA Promotions and Communications Committee will host a seminar in Stoke-onTrent to discuss the Association’s response to BW’s proposals for charitable st atu s . Thr ee Br anch Committee members (Peter Caswell, Martin Banks and Les Franklin) plan to attend.
BW explained at December’s meeting that further development work, including the naming of the New Waterways Charity is being done, and proposals will be included in the Defra consultation. BW can be contacted at NWC@britishwaterways.co.uk to give them your ideas, views and questions.
The agenda includes a briefing by National Chairman Clive Henderson, how the Association must adapt, an over haul for the WoW campaign, and new initiatives to recruit and retain members.
At a recent meeting of IWA's trustees, the objectives and new organisation of the NWC were discussed in detail. IWA trustees agreed that for the immediate and forseeable future, IWA's role would be to become a "critical friend" of the NWC and to ensure that boaters' and other users' interests are properly represented.
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IWA was particularly pleased to see that the objectives are to follow many of IWA's own which have been core values of the Association for over 60 years. IWA was specifically pleased to see that as a result of continued lobbying by the Association, the NWC would now be including restoration as a key objective of the new organisation.
IWA Head Office Bulletin, December 2010.