Surrey Council has agreed to change the way the Basingstoke Canal is managed. A new joint board, made up of Councillors from Surrey and Hampshire County Councils, will oversee the canal. An advisory panel, including experts in finance, waterways and biodiversity, will support the board.

Future of the Basingstoke Canal

The council discussed a report on the future of the Basingstoke Canal, which it jointly owns with Hampshire County Council.

The meeting heard that the current governance and operational model of the Basingstoke Canal Authority (BCA) is no longer fit for purpose and is preventing the canal from being financially sustainable:

The current operation of the Canal is not financially sustainable. In each of the last three years, the BCA has had to draw on its reserves to set a balanced budget...Without any changes to the funding or cost of operating the Authority, it is forecast that it will have to draw approximately £140,000pa, which would mean that the BCA’s reserves will be fully depleted by 2026/27.

- Cabinet Member Decision report - Basingstoke Canal March 2024 v3 002 14 03 24 Clean

The meeting heard that several riparian partners, including district, borough, and town councils, had either reduced or withdrawn their financial contributions.

The report argued that the current governance model is also hindering investment in the canal, in part because:

...any liabilities for borrowing sits with both of the land-owning authorities, SCC and HCC, which means that both County Councils would become liable for significant investment on any canal asset, whether wholly owned by Surrey or Hampshire County Council.

- Cabinet Member Decision report - Basingstoke Canal March 2024 v3 002 14 03 24 Clean

The Leader of the Council noted that:

...currently any developments for the services or investment in the canal which could actually increase income and create better facilities for residents is really difficult to achieve because of the current governance structure.

- Transcript

The changes were unanimously recommended by the Basingstoke Canal Joint Management Committee, which is made up of cross-party members from all the boroughs and districts along the canal.

The meeting heard that Hampshire County Council had already approved the changes on 11 March 2024.

The Leader of the Council said that this was intended to be a very positive step and that he hoped it would allow the council to make sure that residents can enjoy the facilities and enhanced facilities going forward.