Two Stoke canal projects were today announced as being newly funded by ‘Levelling Up’ money…

1)

Trent Rivers Trust – £189,993 to run the “Rediscovering the Trent Valley Way in Stoke” project which will develop and deliver a variety of initiatives through Stoke-on-Trent along existing rights-of-way.

Interesting. ‘The Trent Valley Way’ is a ‘source to sea’ path for the Trent along public footpaths and canal towpaths….

Map One: Biddulph Moor to Hanley (OS map)

Map Two: Hanley to Trentham (OS map)

So the communities there are likely to be Birches Head, Abbey Hulton, Northwood, Shelton, Fenton.

Perhaps also Boothen and Hanford… since it looks to me like the route could now use the river rather than the canal at Stoke-on-Trent, now that the city has the Boothen Ground path giving the new link through to the long riverside path to Trentham. Here’s the part of the map showing the existing Way (red) along the canal, and my suggestion (green) for a new possible ‘beside the river’ route. This would however entail making the footpath from Hanford across to the canal passable and motor-bike proof. It wasn’t, last time I looked. Though that was some years ago now.

Anyway, it’ll be interesting to see what £190k does, and if it gets match-funded to do more.

2.

Canal and Rivers Trust – £109,633 to deliver a community-led placemaking project which will reach out to work across two waterside communities on the Trent & Mersey and Caldon Canals.

Again, interesting. The “two waterside communities” could be anywhere. But if it’s going to overlap with the above Trent Rivers Trust ‘Trent Valley Way’ project, and if the two communities are close together, then that would mean lower and upper Shelton. They take in the Trent & Mersey and the Caldon Canal, and align with local political priorities.