Management

The Grand Western Canal Country Park and Local Nature Reserve is managed by the Canal Ranger Service, which forms part of Devon County Council’s Public Rights of Way and Country Parks Team. The team includes the Canal Manager (Mark Baker) and Canal Rangers (Jo Roberts and Craig Saunderson).

Based at the Canal Basin in Tiverton, the Rangers carry out essential work across the entire Country Park, guided by the Grand Western Canal Management Plan.

The Ranger Service is supported by a dedicated group of volunteers, as well as school and college placements, who assist with practical tasks and events. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact the Canal Ranger Service.

• Volunteers

  Volunteer or Work Experience with the Ranger Service

  

  Why not volunteer with us or complete your work‑experience placement at the Grand Western Canal Country Park? It’s a great way to get fresh air, stay active, learn new skills and make a real difference to this beautiful nature reserve.

  The Ranger Service is always looking for enthusiastic conservation volunteers to help with the day‑to‑day care of the Country Park. With 11¼ miles of canal to look after, there’s plenty to get involved in, including:

  • Hedge laying
  • Coppicing
  • Tree planting
  • Pond maintenance
  • Scrub clearance
  • Litter picking
  • Patrolling the towpath
  • Wildlife surveys

  Volunteering can take as much or as little time as you wish — some people help out regularly each week or month, while others join in whenever they have a spare day.

  Most volunteering takes place during normal office hours, but there are also opportunities at weekends through our Volunteer Day events.

  For more information, please contact the Ranger Service:
  Tel: 01884 254072
  Email: gwcanal@devon.gov.uk

• Hedge laying

  Hedge laying

  The Country Park contains around nine miles of hedgerow running alongside the towpath. After many decades of being trimmed annually with a tractor‑mounted flail, sections of the hedge have become thin and open in places.

  Hedge laying is a traditional countryside skill that restores hedges by encouraging thick regrowth from the base. This creates a dense, healthy hedge that provides excellent wildlife habitat and forms an effective stock‑proof barrier.

  Hedge laying is especially popular with our volunteers, who spend many enjoyable days working on the hedges during the winter season. Volunteer sessions take place on the second Sunday of each month from November to March.

  

• Towpath resurfacing

  Towpath resurfacing

  

  Between 2002 and 2009, the entire towpath was resurfaced using crushed stone from the Westleigh quarry. This work created a wide, flat and dry surface that can be enjoyed by visitors of all abilities throughout the year.

  Over time, grass has encroached along the edges of the towpath, narrowing the stone surface. In addition, the verges have gradually risen as plant material has decomposed, leaving some sections slightly sunken and prone to puddling.

  To maintain good access, periodic resurfacing and edge‑clearing works are required. Excavators are used to scrape back the encroaching vegetation in the worst‑affected areas, and in busier stretches—such as between the Canal Basin and Tidcombe Bridge, and from Crownhill Bridge to the Aqueduct—the towpath is fully resurfaced.

• Dredging

  Dredging

  Over time, the Canal naturally builds up silt from decomposing plant material and soil washed in from surrounding roads and farmland. Without periodic dredging, the Canal would eventually become too shallow for boating and angling, and its wildlife habitats would decline.

  Between 2002 and 2007, most of the Canal was dredged following significant investment from Devon County Council, Mid Devon District Council, and the EU Interreg IIIb programme. The work was carried out in carefully planned phases to reduce disturbance to wildlife. Monitoring afterwards showed an increase in the variety of water plants — an essential part of the Canal’s food chain — and ensured that boating and angling can continue for many years to come.

  The Ranger Service also works closely with neighbouring landowners to reduce future soil erosion into the Canal. Much of the offside boundary has now been fenced to protect the banks from livestock and to create wildflower‑rich buffer strips, which are excellent habitats for wildlife.

• Offside Buffer Strips

  Offside Buffer Strips

  

  As part of the Canal’s Countryside Stewardship Scheme Agreement, around 4km of offside bank have been fenced to create wildlife‑friendly buffer strips. These buffer strips help protect the Canal by reducing silt and nutrient pollution from adjacent land, while also providing excellent habitats for a wide range of wildlife.

  You can also read a case study of the project.

• Culverts

  Culverts

  Between 2009 and 2012, a major project was carried out to clean and repair the Canal’s 30 culverts. These culverts allow water from streams and ditches to flow beneath the Canal, but over time they can become blocked with silt and debris. Specialist enclosed‑access teams were brought in to undertake this essential work, ensuring the culverts continue to function effectively.
• Water Level Management
  Water Level Management

  One of the Canal Ranger Service’s most important responsibilities is managing the water levels within the Grand Western Canal. Water enters the Canal from several different sources, all of which must be monitored closely:

  • Rainfall
  • Temporary overland flows during heavy rain, including ditches and road drainage
  • Land drains from surrounding farmland along the offside bank
  • Permanent watercourses that discharge into the Canal
  • Spring water feeds from the canal bed between Fenacre Bridge and Lowdwells
  • Flood water from overtopping watercourses

  Following the embankment breach in November 2012, major improvements were made to the Canal’s water‑management systems to reduce the risk of future failures.

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  How Water Levels Are Controlled

  

  Canal levels are kept within a safe and acceptable range using a combination of structures operated by the Rangers:

  • Fixed weirs – allow water to overflow safely into nearby watercourses once levels rise
  • Tilting weir – remotely controlled to fine‑tune water levels
  • Guillotine sluice – located near Fossend Bridge, Burlescombe
  • Penstock sluices – located at Snakes Wood near Tiverton, and at Fossend Bridge, Burlescombe

  These structures allow excess water to be released in a controlled way, helping protect embankments and maintain stable conditions throughout the Canal.

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  Monitoring Leaks and Water Loss

  Small‑scale leakage is common in most years and is often detected by damp patches or puddles at the base of embankments. When leaks are found, Rangers take action to seal them wherever possible. If a repair isn’t successful or isn’t feasible, the affected area is regularly monitored to ensure it does not worsen.

  Water is also lost through natural processes such as:

  • Evaporation
  • Transpiration by trees: many trees along the Canal draw significant amounts of water

  However, tree shade also reduces evaporation, helping to balance overall water loss.
• Canal Breach

  Canal Breach

  In November 2012, the Canal suffered a major breach of its largest embankment near Swing Bridge, Halberton. Devon County Council swiftly committed funding not only to repair the embankment but also to upgrade key infrastructure to reduce the risk of future breaches. The rebuilt embankment was officially reopened in March 2014, in time for the Canal’s Bicentenary celebrations, and in the years since, significant improvements have been made to the Canal’s water‑management systems.

• Noticeboards

  Noticeboards

  In 2024, twelve new A0‑sized noticeboards were installed at key access points along the towpath to help enrich the visitor experience at the Grand Western Canal Country Park. Each board includes up‑to‑date information on activities, events, safety and the Canal’s Codes of Conduct. Every noticeboard also features a new A2 map panel, surrounded by stories and images showcasing the wildlife, heritage and management of that particular stretch of canal.

  Funding for the noticeboards, including their design and production, was generously provided by the Inland Waterways Association and the Mid Devon Prosperity Fund, using government ‘Levelling Up’ funding administered by Mid Devon District Council.