Waterways Regulation
and Enforcement Plan
Non-tidal River Thames - 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018
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Activity or task
Boat registration:
Planned licence
check campaigns
and exercises to
identify offences.
Boat registration:
Patrol launch and
lock side checks to
identify offences.
Objective comment and justification
To secure essential revenue, assure boat
safety on our waterway and raise
awareness through planned registration
campaigns and using intelligence led
exercises (e.g. Thames entry points and
slipways), whilst acting as a ‘firm but fair’
regulator.
To secure essential revenue, ensure
compliance with legal requirements (e.g.
insurance and Boat Safety Scheme) and
raise awareness through registration
checks afloat, at locks and other sites,
applying appropriate offence responses
where necessary.
Driver
To raise awareness of
the need to register.
Target
Minimum 20
identifiable
operations.
As a deterrent to
registration evasion.
To ensure river user
safety through
insurance and correct
Boat Safety Scheme
certification.
100% visual
and local
intelligence
based
checks.
To secure essential
revenue for use in
maintaining the river,
Unpowered boat
Minimum
To visit British Rowing (BR) affiliated, or
whilst undertaking cost
registration:
50% of such
sailing, canoeing and similar clubs and
effective investigations.
clubs to be
Rowing, sailing and associations, to assure that boats are
visited by 31
other 'club boat'
correctly registered and to foster good links
To deliver a high
regulation.
March 2018.
with these organisations.
profile regulatory or
Accommodations:
To respond specifically to targets referred
enforcement response, 100% of
Response to cases for investigation, enforcement or regulatory where evasion is
referrals
referred for further action (such as unlicensed structure
suspected or detected. promptly
action.
checks). Development of appropriate and
actioned.
cost effective responses.
To assure the
Accommodations:
To monitor and gather intelligence about
Enhanced
resilience of our
Ongoing monitoring controlled structures in the river, during
regulatory
agreements with
of controlled
regular patrols. Effective evaluation and
action using
associations and
structures.
follow up action, or referral of that
100% of this
controlling bodies
information.
information.
(such as BR).
Speed and wash:
Planned, mobile
patrol and ad hoc
“speed check”
exercises.
To promote the river as a safe environment
for all, by actively detecting speed and/or
wash violations, applying appropriate
offence responses, deterring offenders,
educating boaters and publicising the
results of our action.
Speed and wash:
To record, actively investigate and
Active response to respond to reports of excessive
specific intelligence. speed/wash, initiating a targeted
response where appropriate.
Speed and wash:
To evaluate and if appropriate, legal
Development of a
and safe, to propose and initiate a
volunteer “Speed
public volunteer “Speed Warden”
Warden” campaign. campaign (similar to police schemes)
in response to public complaints.
www.gov.uk/environment-agency
Evidence of
exercises,
speed checks,
results and
publicity.
Ensuring compliance
with legislation and
promoting a safe
environment for ALL
river users, wildlife and All reports
the environment.
evaluated
and actioned
appropriately.
To evaluate,
develop and
test a working
proposal by
31 Dec 2018.
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9
Activity or task
Objective comment and justification
Driver
Target
Short stay moorings:
Third party promotion,
management and
control of EA casual
moorings, utilising
appointed private
contractors.
1) To work with our appointed private
moorings management contractor to
effectively control and promote use of our
short stay, casual mooring sites and
collect revenue where appropriate.
Efficient and cost
effective mooring
management,
promotion and
control of EA casual
moorings for the
benefit of legitimate
moorers navigating
the river.
1) Facilitate and
further develop
“Thames Valley
Moorings” at all
mooring sites.
To promote well
managed riverside
and short stay
moorings riverwide.
Documented
and evidenced
support to
landowners
and agencies.
To provide cost
effective, shared
and meaningful
regulation and
enforcement for
river users, the
public and local
communities.
To provide better
awareness as a
deterrent to
offenders and as
reassurance to river
users.
25 joint patrols,
operations and
co-operative
successes.
Evidence of
joint planning
and information
sharing.
Press briefs,
use of ‘social
media’ and
other forms of
public media
output
To raise public
awareness of our
work and deliver
safety and other
messages to the
public and boating
trade.
To give valuable service at “high visibility” To secure revenue,
or “prestigious” events (e.g. Henley Royal ensure public
safety and target
Regatta and Festival, Reading Festival,
Rewind and others), enforcing legislation known and new
areas of offending,
(e.g. to ensure “river taxis” are properly
whilst enhancing
licensed, insured Boat Safety certified).
EA reputation at
To actively protect public safety,
such events.
operating with other agencies when
required, or beneficial.
12 “Flag Days”
carried out
successfully
during 2017
(during the
boating season)
10 EA landowner:
Promote lawful use
of EA owned land
using civil law and
civil court action.
11 Other landowners:
Advise and support
other agencies,
landowners, and
authorities.
2) To work with our appointed civil
enforcement partner, to deter abuse of
our casual moorings and collect excess
charges through Civil Action.
As a landowner, to employ civil law and
the courts, to prohibit illicit moorers from
EA land (and the river bed below Staines)
to keep sites clear for legitimate use, to
protect public safety, safe navigation and
the environment.
To continue to support the use of 3rd
party management and civil enforcement
action at local authority, or other
landowner mooring sites. Attending
related multi-agency operations.
12 Operational joint
working:
Routine and planned
joint activity and
exercises with other
regulatory and
enforcement bodies.
To deliver effective, ongoing regulation
and enforcement outcomes with our
partners (e.g. Metropolitan Marine Unit,
Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Port of
London Authority, Boat Safety Scheme,
local councils and EA teams), through
formal and informal arrangements and full
participation in multi-agency operations.
13 Public awareness:
To publicise enforcement achievements
External promotion of through GOV.UK, boating and other
our waterways civil
media and contribute to joint agency and
compliance, law
safety promotion events at key sites.
enforcement and
regulatory activity.
14 Public awareness:
Deploying the
maximum number of
EA patrol craft and
officers during high
profile “Flag Day”
events.
15 ‘High profile’ events:
Operational
attendance to protect
the public and
enforce relevant
legislation.
To deliver high profile, high impact “flag
days” with the maximum number of
patrols across the river delivering safety,
regulatory, enforcement or other
messages and activity throughout the
year and across the river.
www.gov.uk/environment-agency
2) Refer all
relevant cases
of “overstaying”
on our sites.
To establish legal
Documented
processes on our
and publicised
own land and act to results of EA
respond to public
civil compliance
concerns.
action.
Attend at least
6 high profile
events. Carry
out identifiable
enforcement
and evaluate
feedback.
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Activity or task
Objective comment and justification
16 Boat marking:
Advise boat owners
and encourage the
correct marking of
boats with their
registered name.
To actively advise and encourage boat
owners to correctly mark their boats with
the registered name, as a positive action
that assists our officers and protects their
property, as well as being a requirement
of registration, through a campaign of
advisory notices and face-to-face contact.
17 Hazardous boats:
To act as a responsible navigation
Identification and
authority in safeguarding customers and
Control of boats
staff by identifying and controlling
found or reported to
hazardous boats. To act on intelligence
be in an unsafe
received (e.g. Boat Safety Scheme Office
condition.
(BSSO) reports of non-compliance or
incorrect certification).
18 Intelligence led
To ensure effective capture, evaluation
enforcement:
and dissemination of received
The correct recording, information and deliver targeted,
use and handling of
measurable “intelligence based”
intelligence material. regulation and enforcement. To
appropriately share intelligence with
other agencies when required.
19 Fire investigations:
To act as a professional partner to the
Delivery of good
BSSO, Fire Rescue Services (FRS) and
quality fire reports
others, investigating promptly and
and actions by
accurately reporting to required
trained officers.
standards, considering any EA regulation
required and highlighting safety concerns.
20 Boat dimension
To compare vessel dimensions to those
measurement:
declared on the Navigation Licensing
System, through planned and intelligence
Checks to establish
led activity, with appropriate regulatory, or
correctly declared
enforcement action being taken.
details recorded.
LIT 8003
THA/EAD/0317/E/V1
www.gov.uk/environment-agency
Driver
Target
The ability to
properly identify
boats, to the benefit
of the EA, other
agencies and boat
owners.
Records of
direct contact
and notices
distributed.
Customer
feedback.
To ensure public
safety, through
regulation of
compliance with the
law and guidelines.
Recorded
regulation of
boats found,
or reported to
be noncompliant.
To assure the
proper, timely
handling and use of
intelligence, to
deliver targeted
enforcement
activity.
To provide timely,
accurate and useful
reports, performing
our obligatory duty
as the navigation
authority.
To assure the
correct licensing
revenue is collected
and the accuracy of
details held by us.
Intelligence
processing
development
and results of
targeted activity
for the EA and
agencies.
All referrals
investigated
and reported to
BSSO/FRS.
Appropriate EA
action taken.
2 planned
exercises and
all referrals
promptly
actioned.