Just found your website, I attach our most recent press release.l  Once re-opened you would have access by foot, cycle and boat from Walton to the rest of the network.

I attach an image. The exact route unknown at this time until the feasibility study is complete. One possibility is to run a canal adjacent with the River Dearne.

We await the feasibility study report and its recommendations. It would be the intention that Parish Councils and other Local & regional organisations would be consulted for their views and opinions 

Best wishes Derek Housley

Chair Barnsley Dearne & Dove Canals Trust

Press Release

A meeting of the Barnsley Canal Consortium in September is expected to support a detailed feasibility-taking place on the Barnsley Dearne & Dove Canals. The route of which runs from Wakefield to Barnsley & Down the Dearne Valley before linking up with the South Yorkshire Navigation between Rotherham and Doncaster.

Derek Housley Chair of the Barnsley Dearne and Dove Canals Trust said " With the setting up of the Canal Partnership the outlook for this forgotten missing waterway link is getting better. The regional focus of attention is moving to this Waterway with the reopening of the Rochdale and Huddersfield Canals, also there are proposals to link the Chesterfield Canal with a Rother link to the South Yorkshire Navigation at Rotherham."

"It would not be just be a linking waterway but also long distance footpath, cycleway, fishery, linear park and nature reserve. Else where Waterways have been used has a catalyst for rural and urban regeneration, we would expect it to do the same for the parts of the West Riding that it passes through. The potential for environmental, economic recreational opportunities along the corridor is vast. It would bring money and jobs into the area, it would raise the areas profile in terms of tourism."

"The Barnsley Dearne and Dove Canals Trust has been campaigning for a number of years for reinstatement of the Yorkshire link Waterway. We fully support the Barnsley Canal Consortium partnership in looking at a proposed feasibility study. Over recent months the profile of the canals has been raised and this has been reflected in our increasing membership, with new members joining each week. "

It is estimated that the restored Barnsley, Dearne & Dove Canals could generate substantial economic benefit for the area through which the canal passes. The leisure and tourism activities that will take place on and around the canal will attract visitors to the area and provide recreation opportunities locally for people who live in the vicinity of the

Canal, while the scheme will help realise wider development opportunities within the Canal corridor. The benefits have been estimated using a multiplier approach and are

expressed in the following terms:-

1. Gross expenditure in the locality by visitors on goods and services;

1. Income retained within the local economy, taking account of indirect and induced effects, together with leakages from the economy;

1. Net permanent employment generated by this expenditure, expressed as full-time job equivalents (FTEs), taking account of indirect and induced employment;

1. Temporary construction employment, expressed in man0years, arising from the restoration works only (Additional construction jobs will arise from associated canal side developments).

In addition, other permanent employment will be generated by non-leisure and tourism uses of the canal and riparian land. This impact has not been quantified at this stage, as it would require further detailed work to be undertaken on a site specific basis along the route of the canal.

The benefits are summarised as follows:-

Gross Visitor Expenditure £ 9.4 million

Income retained within the local economy £ 3.8 million

Permanent jobs created—Leisure and tourism 375

Construction employment 630 man-years

In addition the, the scheme will lead to an enhancement of residential property values for new housing alongside or close to the waterway. A 15-20 % premium might be expected for waterside housing while housing within the same development, but without waterside frontage might expect an 7-8 % increase in value.

The restoration scheme will also generate the following social benefits for the locality:-

1. Opportunities for education initiatives;

1. Links to other recreation resources in the area;

1. The integration of recreation with the natural environment, providing a focus for activities under Agenda 21

1. Opportunities for health and fitness schemes, in association with local community health interests;

1. The development of enhanced recreational facilities and infrastructure for disadvantaged groups such as the disabled;

1. A focus for special events and festivals;

1. Opportunities for community involvement both in the restoration scheme and in the subsequent Management of the waterway;

1. Opportunities for involvement by third parties in special projects and initiatives;

1. Off-road commuting by foot or cycle in the vicinity of towns along the route of the canal

1. Opportunities for employment training

Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal

At its Annual Meeting, British Waterways reported that a thorough investigation into the restoration of the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal costing £500,000, of which £350,000 came from the North West Regional Development Agency, had indicated that the work could be completed for under £36 million. The restoration of the canal, short though it is, would be likely to create 10,000 jobs compared with 6,000 jobs being created as a result of the restoration of the Rochdale Canal and 2,000 jobs resulting from the restoration of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

Ribble Link

The Millennium Commission, which still has a small amount of residual funds, has agreed a further grant of £150,000 to benefit the Ribble Link. The money will help finance a new community boat, an outdoor classroom at lock 5, visitor seating, a new footbridge, a wetland area to encourage wildlife and an extension to the existing arts trail. The work to provide the above facilities is likely to take about twelve months.

The Millennium Commission provided £2.7 million of the £6 million cost for construction of the Ribble Link, which opened in 2002. The balance of the funding came from BW, The Waterways Trust, Lancashire County Council, grants from the Landfill Tax Credits Scheme, IWA and a range of local contributions.

Extracted from British Waterways Website.

"British Waterways is the public corporation responsible for the care and enhancement of the nation's 2,000-mile two centuries old network of canals and rivers, working in partnerships with public, private and voluntary organisations to develop and improve the waterways in a sustainable manner."