PRESS RELEASE

1 September

Works underway on £1.75million restoration in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

A project to restore the historic Carpenters Road Lock in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is now underway. The work is one of the final pieces of a ten-year programme to restore the Bow Back Rivers and preserve an important part of London’s industrial heritage.

It will see new lock gates, restoration of the lock structure and the counter balance weights that enable the gates to open. It will also ensure that the lock plays an important role in flood prevention, with the new gates being automated to enable flood water to be distributed to channels within the Bow Back Rivers. When restored the lock gates will provide the opportunity to navigate from the waterways around the former Olympic Stadium to , which in turn runs south out to the .

The Canal & River Trust – the charity that cares for 2,000 miles of waterways, including the Bow Back Rivers that weave through the Park – is leading the project, which includes £680,000 funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, £100,000 from the London Legacy Development Corporation and £4,500 from the Inland Waterways Association.

Carpenters Road Lock is significant from an engineering point of view, as it had the only ‘double radial lock gates’ in the country. Built in the 1930s this design included two convex- shaped gates that lifted up vertically to enable boats to pass through. In the second half of the 20th-century, the Bow Back Rivers fell out of use and the lock became unusable, with the last passage by boat through the lock recorded in the 1960s. The advent of the London 2012 Games saw major works bringing new life to the waterways in what is now Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

To celebrate the restoration, the Canal & River Trust and partners are planning a range of community events and activities, including an east London canal festival, so people can learn about the history of the lock and rivers. The restoration is expected to be completed in early 2017.

Divers took to the water today (1 September) to prepare the lock for draining, ahead of repairs to the lock walls.

Colin Perkins, Canal & River Trust project manager, said: “It’s been a long term ambition to restore Carpenters Road lock, so we’re delighted to be starting. The lock is hugely important from a heritage and engineering point of view, as well playing a key role in flood prevention. What’s more, with London’s waterways becoming more and more popular, in

T: 0203 204 4514 E: [email protected] W: www.canalrivertrust.org.uk Twitter: @CanalRiverTrust Patron: H.R.H. The Prince of Wales. Canal & River Trust is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales with company number 7807276 and registered charity number 1146792, registered office address: First Floor North, Station House, 500 Elder Gate, Milton Keynes MK9 1BB

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the long term, the project enables us to open a whole new waterway route. It’s an exciting time for the canals and rivers in the capital, and bringing the waterways in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to life is definitely a part of that.”

For more information visit https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/london-waterways/carpenters-road- lock

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Notes to editors For more media information contact [email protected] 020 3204 4410

The Canal & River Trust The Canal & River Trust is the guardian of 2,000 miles of historic waterways across England and Wales, caring for the nation’s third largest collection of listed structures, as well as museums, archives, and hundreds of important wildlife sites. We believe that living waterways transform places and enrich lives and our role is to make sure there is always a place on your doorstep where you can escape the pressures of everyday life, stretch your legs and simply feel closer to nature. www.canalrivertrust.org.uk / @CanalRiverTrust / @crtcomms

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park London’s newest visitor destination, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, is a place unlike any other. Visitors to the Park are able to enjoy beautiful parklands and waterways, world- famous sporting venues, arts and events and spectacular views from the ArcelorMittal Orbit. As a new heart for east London, the Park will also provide new homes, jobs and a cultural and education quarter.

The London Legacy Development Corporation promotes and delivers physical, social, economic and environmental regeneration in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and the surrounding area, in particular by maximising the legacy of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

For more information visit QueenElizabethOlympicPark.co.uk follow us on Twitter @noordinarypark and like us on Facebook facebook.com/QueenElizabethOlympicPark