• Cotswold Canals Trust: Reconnecting the Severn to the Thames

  • Cotswold Canals Trust: Reconnecting the Severn to the Thames

The Cotswold Canals are the subject of the largest canal restoration project in the UK — an ambitious effort to reopen a lost waterway across the Gloucestershire Cotswolds for nature, community and future generations.

The work is led by the Cotswold Canals Trust, a volunteer-led registered charity founded in 1972. Its goal is a bold one: to restore a continuous, navigable link between the River Severn and the River Thames.

The Cotswold Canals at a glance

  • Made up of two canals: the Stroudwater Navigation and the Thames & Severn Canal
  • Total length: around 36 miles
  • From: the River Severn, via Saul Junction on the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal
  • To: the River Thames at Inglesham, near Lechlade
  • Restoration led by: the Cotswold Canals Trust, since 1972
  • Status: the UK’s largest canal restoration project

Why the canals were built

Together, the two Cotswold Canals once formed a through route across southern England, linking the industrial West Country and the Midlands (via the Severn) with London and the south-east (via the Thames).

The Stroudwater Navigation opened first, in 1779, carrying coal and goods into the busy mill town of Stroud. A decade later, in 1789, the Thames & Severn Canal extended the line eastwards over the Cotswold hills to the Thames — completing a coast-to-coast inland waterway.

Its greatest engineering feat is the Sapperton Tunnel: at 3,817 yards, it drove the canal beneath the Cotswold ridge to reach the summit level. In its day it was one of the longest canal tunnels in the country.

Why they declined — and why we restore them

The canals thrived while water was the fastest way to move heavy cargo. But the summit level of the Thames & Severn always struggled to hold water, and the coming of the railways drew away the trade. The canals slipped into decline and were eventually abandoned — around nine miles were later infilled, and Sapperton Tunnel fell derelict as its roof collapsed.

A century on, the vision is for far more than a boat route. The restored Cotswold Canals are intended to be:

  • A green corridor for wildlife and biodiversity
  • A place to walk, cycle and enjoy the water along the Thames & Severn Way
  • A community asset running through Stroud and the surrounding villages
  • A living link to the region’s rich industrial heritage
  • A restored connection between two great river systems and the wider UK canal network

Restoration Video’s

The restoration, section by section

The Cotswold Canals restoration runs from the Severn in the west to the Thames in the east. Here is the route broken down into its main sections.

1. Saul Junction & the Severn end (Phase 1B)

The western gateway, where the canal meets the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal at Saul Junction — the point of connection to the River Severn and the national network.

  • Key challenge: the “Missing Mile” beneath the M5 motorway
  • Progress: an underpass at the A38–A419 Whitminster roundabout was completed in 2020
  • Visitor Centre: the Trust runs a popular visitor centre at Saul Junction

2. Stonehouse to Stroud (Phase 1A — complete)

The heart of the early restoration, through the town of Stroud and out to Stonehouse.

  • Around 1.3 miles of canal re-cut and re-watered between 2006 and 2018
  • Locks and bridges restored, including work around Dudbridge, Lodgemore and Wallbridge
  • Headquarters & Visitor Centre: Bell House, Wallbridge Lock, Stroud

3. The Golden Valley: Stroud to Brimscombe & Chalford

East of Stroud, the canal climbs the scenic Golden Valley through Brimscombe and Chalford — a stretch rich in mills, heritage structures and Cotswold landscape.

  • A focus for ongoing restoration and community projects
  • Historic Brimscombe Port, once the canal’s central inland harbour

4. Sapperton Tunnel & the summit

The canal’s most dramatic feature, carrying the waterway 3,817 yards beneath the Cotswold ridge to its highest level.

  • One of the great challenges of the wider restoration
  • A celebrated piece of Georgian canal engineering

5. Cirencester to Lechlade & the Thames

The eastern end, running down through the Thames headwaters near Cirencester and Lechlade to meet the River Thames at Inglesham.

  • The point where the Cotswold Canals rejoin the national river network
  • Completing the coast-to-coast vision, Severn to Thames

Cotswold Canals Connected

The restoration took a major step forward in late 2020, when the Trust and its partners secured an £8.9 million National Lottery Heritage Fund grant for the Cotswold Canals Connected project — extending the restored waterway westwards from Stroud towards Saul Junction and the Severn.

The work is delivered through the Cotswold Canals Partnership, bringing together the Trust with Stroud District Council and other local and national bodies.

The obstacles ahead

Restoration on this scale takes decades, and real challenges remain:

  • The M5 motorway — the “Missing Mile” is among the toughest engineering tasks
  • Infilled and lost sections — around nine miles were filled in after abandonment
  • Sapperton Tunnel — a huge undertaking to reopen through the summit
  • Long-term funding — matching ambition with the money to deliver it

How you can help

The Cotswold Canals Trust runs on the energy of its members and volunteers. You can get involved through:

  • Membership and donations
  • Volunteering on restoration and maintenance work parties
  • Enjoying a boat trip or charter, or a guided walking tour
  • Visiting the Saul Junction or Wallbridge (Stroud) visitor centres
  • Supporting the Trust shop and events

Restoring the Cotswold Canals is, in every sense, a community endeavour — a historic waterway being reconnected, lock by lock and mile by mile, for nature, community and future generations.

Location Log