Jericho Wharf TrustResults of a Survey of Residential Boaters

(JWT-061)

An earlier census (autumn 2011) identified more than 400 boats in the wider Oxford area, of which 109 were residential boats moored on the canal or river within the Oxford City boundaries.

During the summer of 2012 Jericho Wharf Trust has distributed questionnaires to as many as possible of these residential boats within City limits, seeking to build a profile of these boat dwellers and their needs.

61 completed questionnaires have been received, representing 56% of the target group. Analysis of their responses follows.

PART 1

Profile of the Respondentsand their Moorings

Respondent Demographics

• 101 people live on the boats of the 61 respondents, including 24 children (11 of these attend local schools). If the respondents are typical of the wider group, this suggests an Oxford City residential boat population of around 180 people in total, including more than 40 children.

• 84% of the respondents are currently in work, 53% working full time and 31% part time• Of those who work, 25% work from their boat while 75% travel to work• 72% have a yearly income of less than £20,000; 18% less than £5,000 •11% claim benefits of some kind (eg Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance)• 87% are registered with local GPs• 11% report a disability of some kind

Economic Circumstances

• For 92% of respondents, their boat is their sole place of residency

• 85% own the boat they live on • 48% are registered to vote – but only 28% in Oxford constituencies

610

45

48

POTENTIAL IMPLICATIONS: • There are probably 60 or more boats at authorized residential moorings within the City• There may be as many as 45-50 which are not• 18% of respondents have received 1 or more notices to move their boat within the past year

12

10

10

If enforcement were increased, what effect would this have on you?

PART 2

The need for a new local Boatyard,and preferred facilities

75% of respondents agreed that “the previous Jericho boatyard also provided a place that helped the boating community’s sense of well being.”

Within a large number of write-in comments (detailed in the Appendix):62% or respondents described deterioration in boat maintenance and/or safety

39% described loss of community and/or alienation

Location in Oxford

Out of water DIY work

Toilet and shower facilities

Pump-out facilities

Live aboard while o.o.w. works

Boat Safety Scheme Service

Importance in any new local boatyard of…..?

Very Reasonably NotImportant Important Important

Repair, Replacement, Installation services for:

Engine Fuel System (diesel/petrol)

Gas System

Electrical Wiring

Heating System

Water System

Ventilation & flues

Bilge/auto bilge pump

Painting - topside

Painting – below waterline

Sand blasting of hull

Cabin/doors/windows

Other internal refitting

APPENDIX

Respondent Comments, from forms

What has the most important impact of the Jericho Boatyard’s closure been for you?

Inconvenience of having to go further for services. Loss of community hub.Lack of facilities to take boat out for blacking and maintenance. My hull is not maintained any moreTo no longer have somewhere to work on my boat close to my mooring, and to not be able to choose who I want to work on it.Costs and difficulty of safely maintaining boat. Higher costs have adversely affected boat’s safety and personal quality of life.Arrived since its closureOnly been here since December 2011No local facilities for hull blacking. No local chandlery supplies. Limited technological / mechanical back-up.It would have been a community space where I could have learned more about maintaining my boat and also met like-minded people.Lack of service. Loss of moorings.I have a widebeam and cannot access the canal or Jericho.Less work! Loss of ‘boaters community centre’.No gas. Inexpensive diesel. Community spirit.A deep and profound loss of friends in a working community. The ethnic cleansing that continues today as a result of UMBEG’s new legislation. Through this lack of facilities the Oxford residential fleet has suffered a little in terms of safety. We have lost three wooden boats in the Oxford area in as many years which could have been saved – Tao, Riptide and Camelot. The other safety aspects for continuous cruising traffic entering the Thames from the Oxford Canal is difficult to assess. The DIY facilities have been greatly missed too.Not lived on boat long enough.None except fewer undesirable itinerants around, and less petty theft.No chandlery in Oxford!I have only recently arrived in Oxford, so it’s difficult to say.It reflects the greed for more land in Jericho and the collapse of a fine community.Apart from the obvious loss of service I feel that we are losing heritage whereby the Oxford Canal was the beginning of the Industrial Revolution and boating links to the past should be preserved.The complete lack of opportunity to do external DIY maintenance on my boat without disturbing neighbours; plus having to walk past an eyesore on a daily basis.A sense of a community being marginalized and exploited by a niche market.My boat was craned out there for work on the hull and blacking in the past.Further to go to Yarnton, less convenient.Neglect / postponement of small jobs, which then become worse.Don’t know, I am new to Wolvercote. It does not affect me either way to be honest.

No place in Oxford to do DIY boat work and lack of focal point for boating community. No easy access to parts and equipment at affordable rates, lack of feeling that boating community is acknowledged and accepted.Not having a local reliable facility to do repairs.The boatyard provided a place where there was an option to do DIY work and repairs on the boats. Sadly, this is no longer an option.The fact that there is no real central hub for boaters and no place near for us to get advice/repairs and have help. I think the boating community feels its absence a lot.None at the momentLoss of community spiritNo boat maintenanceThe loss of facilities to do boat repairs or crane out if there is a problem in the winter when the river is high or the canal is iced up. The loss of workshop space to do carpentry etc.No impact.FacilitiesNew resident I don’t like seeing those boring boardsI lost a workshop where, having emerged from a 12 month spell of acute illness determining employment for the same period, I was making and designing things again and earning a living. Castlemill boatyard for all its notorious deficiencies was the hub of the male boating community. Most women found it quite threatening. I believe that this might be a feature worth considering whilst contemplating the shape and structure of the boatyard of the future. The future is only tomorrow!Repairs to my boat came to a standstillI wasn’t hereThe closure of the main community hub has been a terrible blow to a wonderful group of decent caring folkNo local place to do urgent work to hull, superstructure and engine/gearboxRoutine boat maintenance now requires a 4 hour river journey to Eynsham boatyardInability to carry out DIY maintenanceFairly minimal because College Cruisers offers most services anyway. However, dry dock would be extremely usefulLack of facilities and communityLack of qualified people for boat maintenance – only one narrowboat gas fitter advertising in the whole Oxford area. Also lack of good, centrally located chandleryWelding on the towpath! Dangerous, difficult, hard to maintain power supply – all maintenance of boats is put off, costs rise because DIY is much harder. Makes us feel BW see us as an annoyance rather than their core customers. They seem to prefer fishermen to boaters.

What has the most important impact of the Jericho Boatyard’s closure been for you? (Cont)

Are there any other inputs or comments you would like to make?Reinstatement of Worcester Street Basin would be a great facilityResidential boating is a reality – people are doing it! Why not face up to your responsibilities as our council and work with us – as you do with many other communitiesBeing able to access water and pump out for larger boats in Oxford is impossible and needs to be addressed. The issues are many and it is great you are addressing themNot to be taken advantage of or victimised. Boat men are different.I regard living on board a fully functioning narrowboat on the Thames as a priviledge, but also a dream realised only after years of work and focus. If the Oxford City Council Police continue to implement their proposed new mooring restrictions on the Thames in the Oxford area it will have a massive impact on my work life and ability to co-parent successfully.Using another boatyard which would be excellent.Re-cycling – environment issues more of a priority. Too much landfill at Hythe bins. Also important: safety on towpath for pedestrians and animals/birds. It is a path not a cycle track!! Not so long ago cycling was not allowed. Dogs – more control.English Heritage or National Trust should adopt the boatyard and make it a going concern, Oxford City Council need to provide unserviced moorings on the river.The closure of the boatyard implies a sense of neglect to the community and environs. There appears to be nowhere else locally that could be developed for such amenities.Facilities to prepare boats for BSS are important.Boats need to be under cover, to ensure work can be done no matter what the weather or time of year.I have been able to find sufficient support and repair since moving onto the canal. I feel a proper licence, like I have, is important; but also feel it should be easier to get (not waterways auction system) and more should be available.It would be nice to have a ‘community centre’ as focal point for boating community.This boatyard subsidised.We need a boatyard. So get it sorted.A number of boats have sunk nearby the boatyard that could easily have been saved if the yard had been in place.Anti-social behaviour on the towpath.Boaters are beautiful.Well done, I hope more people fill this in than last time (>100). The time has come for a change.Repairs to my boat came to a standstill.Council should look at major/minor towns in Europe. Most have moorings for boats including liveaboards.Many thanks for going to the trouble of conducting the survey. I’d be interested to receive results and hope that they can be used to good effect.I believe a boatyard would be a positive asset for the community, bringing employment opportunities and camraderie.Thanks for organising the survey and all the efforts for the boating community, and good luck.We feel on-line liveaboard boaters make the towpath much safer and more reputable. Canals should be about boats. We are doing a watervole sighting record for BBOWT. We have an allotment & participate in local life.