Brief

The Kennet and Avon canal runs through the centre of the UNESCO World Heritage City of Bath, winding behind our client’s Georgian townhouse. They had a jetty at the bottom of their garden already, but over the years it had collapsed and could no longer be safely used.

 RA Marine was asked to replace it with a simple jetty that they could use for kayaking and paddleboarding. The access, however, was far from simple. The only way down to the water was either through the house, or down a shared access at the side of the terrace, a narrow alley which ended in an old stone archway just over half a metre wide and 1.2 metres high!

Solution

The jetty itself was our standard aluminium frame with maintenance-free composite decking that comes with a twenty-year guarantee. The frame sections, though, were bespoke and the size completely depended on the size of the access.

 The team carried long, thin sections of frame down the stairs at the side access, then carefully manoevered them through the archway without any damage to the centuries-old stone arch. From there, wearing drysuits, they entered the canal, added floats to the frame and walked the jetty around into place.

Challenges

This design was entirely based around the access limits, making careful measurements and cutting frame sections that would fit perfectly down the stairs and through the narrow archway. The client had already approached other companies before RA Marine who had done a site visit and did not provide a quote.

 We also had to consult with the Canal and Rivers Trust in order to get a permit for the replacement jetty, something we do quite frequently. RA Marine has developed a good relationship with such organisations by using inert aluminium and prefabricating most of our structures away from the site, reducing pollution that may affect flora and fauna.

 The final product is sleek, dark grey and unobtrusive, a solid, practical structure with as little impact on the environment as possible, just like our installation methods.