The Wey & Arun Canal Trust is now turning its attention to the next major extension to the navigable section centred on Loxwood, on the West Sussex/Surrey border.

With Devils Hole Lock virtually complete and ready for its formal reopening on 17 April 2010, the Trust is launching an appeal for reconstruction of the next lock North - Southland.

Restoration of Southland Lock is, in effect, a complete rebuild. The only visible remains are the iron quoins (hinge posts) for the bottom gates, and because a badger sett is located at the foot of the original lock, it is planned to build a replacement lock about 10m away from the badger sett.

Southland Lock was originally built of bricks, rather than the local stone used for the locks further south. The bricks were recycled in the 1930s, reportedly by the Cokelers, a Loxwood-based religious community, who sold the bricks to a Cranleigh builders' merchant. The plans are to use bricks for the new lock chamber, probably the locally-produced Weinerberger red multi stock, as used successfully by the Trust for the Loxwood road crossing project. The bricks will face walls of reinforced concrete blocks, resulting in a much stronger and more stable structure than the original. The brick 'training' walls will continue south to the original lock site, to provide protection for the banks without undue disturbance to the badgers and other wildlife.

Gates will be of Ekki, a long-lasting environmentally-friendly tropical hardwood from sustainable sources. The same material will be used to provide a bridge giving access across the canal for the badgers.

As with all of the restored and rebuilt locks currently in use, an electric pump, with the associated power supply, will be installed, to return water to the pound above the lock.

The detailed plans for the lock, bridges and surrounding landscape have still to be drawn up, and will be produced in full consultation with interested parties, including the riparian owners and the Sussex Badger Group. The dimensions, slightly longer and wider than the original, will comply with Association of Inland Navigation Authorities guidelines.

Even using mainly volunteer labour, the cost is estimated at around £300,000, which will be met by the Trust's own fundraising activities.

Further information about the Wey & Arun Canal Trust is available from the Trust's office, on 01403 752403.

Notes for Editors

The Wey & Arun Canal Trust

The Wey & Arun Canal, "London's lost route to the sea" was originally opened in 1816 between the River Wey at Shalford, near Guildford, and Pallingham, near Pulborough, the head of navigation of the River Arun. It closed in 1871, due to railway competition. Since the 1970s the 23-mile waterway has been the subject of a campaign by volunteers led by the Wey & Arun Canal Trust to restore the route to navigation. Work has been undertaken in a number of locations, most notably the stretch near the Sussex/Surrey border at Loxwood. Over two miles in length, this includes four working locks, two public road crossings, an aqueduct, two farm bridges, and numerous minor works, all built or rebuilt through voluntary effort. Boat trips are available on this stretch, onboard several craft, including the new 50-seater electrically-powered Wiggonholt. See www.weyandarun.co.uk