Local group seeks your Banbury Canal memories

The Banbury Canal Community Interest Company (CIC) and the three women who run the group aim to run projects which celebrate the heritage of the Oxford Canal in Banbury.

The area around Castle Quay and the canal is changing fast with the new waterfront development and the group wants to capture memories, stories and pictures of the canal area before they're all forgotten.

Banbury Canal CIC has received funding from the Community Lottery to help people feeling isolated by the current lockdown by offering something different to think about. They're encouraging people to gather memories of the canal and the town centre in Banbury as the area changes fast with new development.

Banbury Canal CIC Director Kate Saffin said: "We have been wanting to capture some of these stories for ages, so to get this funding is such a help. And it’s great to be offering something for local people to get involved in that will take our minds of Covid and lockdown, even if just for an afternoon.

"We know there are amazing stories out there, a couple of years ago a gentleman in his 80s visited the lock and told us that he remembered the night it was bombed in November 1940, he and his friends came to have a look the next morning. We’d love to hear from him again!

"The project has to be completed by the end of March so we want to hear from people as soon as possible."

Ways people can take part:

· Record a family member or neighbour recalling their childhood and youth in Banbury

· Record or write their own memories

· The group also has two trained interviewers if people know of someone who might like to take part, but isn’t in their social bubble.

The group will be sharing the stories via Tooley’s boatyard website, social media and a booklet.

The group also has a series of events scheduled about the canal, which include an online discussion meeting to share memories about the Banbury Canal at 3pm this Saturday February 27 through the group's Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/BanburyCanalThe following Saturday at 3pm on March 6 there will a free workshop on Zoom with Julia Letts, who is a BBC radio producer and expert in recording oral histories.

Later in March the group will host a creative writing workshop with the 2015 Worcestershire Poet Laureate, Heather Wastie.

For more information about submitting Banbury Canal memories or taking part in the activities contact the group through the following email: [email protected].