Eliza joined as a Trustee in 2025. She worked as a project officer in the early days of British Waterways’ development of canals from commercial trade routes to community and wildlife resources crossing the UK. She continued with roles in publicity and marketing, funding and education. As a Service Manager in the South West, Eliza looked after a wide range of departments delivering boating and customer services, ecology and heritage, marketing and enforcement. Eliza headed up projects to test the delivery of Arts on the waterways and project which involved the restoration and use of 10 heritage working boats.
As a Consultant, Eliza became a Trustee of the Association for Heritage Interpretation and offered heritage interpretation, marketing and education services to a wide range of organisations including the Woodland Trust, the Waterways Trust and community organisations. She has also worked for English Heritage at the wonderful Witley Court and Stourport Forward in Stourport on Severn where she lives.
Whilst working as a contractor, she was inspired by working to create an interpretation plan for the Unlocking the Severn Project on the River Severn. This amazing project to build fish passes along the river was the result of a partnership between organisations with an involvement on the River Severn, including the Severn Rivers Trust, the Environment Agency and the Canal & River Trust. Eliza has been fortunate to be able to work with an amazing team of volunteers who deliver education work at the biggest fish pass in Diglis. We now deliver weekly school visits between March and October, using practical STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) activities. Epic Engineering, designed by the Severn Rivers Trust Team has engaged hundreds of children a year since the start of the project. This year we have added a new STEM activity all about building Victorian Lock Gates.
Eliza and her Canal & River Trust Explorers Education volunteers in Wiltshire, South Wales, Worcestershire and Warwickshire have a great record for delivering innovative and exciting, curriculum led school visits across the waterways. At the end of February 2026, Eliza retired from the Canal & River Trust and is delighted that she will have more time to devote to the Severn Rivers Trust as a Trustee. She also helps to maintain and display working boat Bramble and is a keen gardener, researcher and planning new projects. You might see her out boating or walking with husband Alan and boat-dog Nell, on the River Stour and River Severn near her home.
