With all ‘out and about’ activities suspended because of the Coronavirus Pandemic, here is a wonderful chance for one lucky RTS member to own a unique wooden table 'The Silver River' featuring the River Thames in silver leaf and for all those who buy tickets to help an important River Thames charity.
About the table
Mike Orme has carved the river from source to sea in this beautiful table of Sheesham wood, illuminated in silver leaf, 1400 mm long, 465 mm wide and 455 mm high.
_.jpeg)
Chairman: Hilary Pereira
020 8892 5086
Hon Secretary: Pat Speight
020 8948 0643
The Upper Tideway branch has a limited social programme of talks, walks and picnics, some together with other local groups.
We have a presence at various annual events, such as Tidefest, the Great River Race and Richmond Fair. With other local groups, we engage with the Thames Landscape Strategy, supporting and enhancing on our special local Arcadia.
We have an interest in planning matters, trying to preserve what is best about the river, and are ever watchful for applications, including any new non-mobile houseboats, that appear to encroach on precious river space.
The river authority for us is the Port of London Authority We responded last year to their proposals for changing the legislation under which they operate, but have yet to hear how they propose to proceed.
We are a small branch in terms of the length of the river we cover, but hope we punch above our weight, for example in relation to policy matters.
Current Activities - Branch Update (April 2026)
The local river is looking its best, with many members out enjoying the banks and being on the river. The river birds are noisily active. There is an active calendar of competitive rowing and sailing – see the website of the Port of London Authority under ‘river events’ - as well as many informal gatherings and club events afloat. Recently we had the Universities Boat Race: always exciting and best seen from our recommended venue of Chiswick Pier.
Meanwhile, the local branch committee continues promoting our interests on the river. A report from the public meeting held by the Port of London Authority (PLA) in March is elsewhere on this website, together with the answers to a long list of questions from the RTS. Since the PLA is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, asking questions at a public meeting has been found a good way to secure responses. Our questions ranged from cycles over Richmond lock bridge to freemasons, covering also availability of charts, prosecutions for pollution and avoiding bridge closures. We continued to press for publication of the report from the chair of the public inquiry into the PLA’s Harbour Revision Order (HRO) and this has finally been made public (on the government website), indicating that the chair’s recommendations will be adopted. For more information on the HRO and the line taken by the RTS, see another section of our website.
We now have the report from the second inspector considering the unauthorised expansion of the Peggy Jean restaurant from the Jesus College Barge onto its adjacent pontoon by Richmond Bridge. The RTS had supported enforcement action by Richmond Council. The inspector came up with a compromise, allowing only the kitchen to stay on the enlarged pontoon, but also securing access from it for traditional rowers. RTS comments on other recent planning applications have mainly focussed on flood resilience, an increasing concern locally. The RTS is also engaging actively with the Thames Landscape Strategy as it undertakes a major refresh, and also reflects on measures needed to deal with the increased risk of flooding.
Following the financial collapse of linked companies and the non-delivery of the marina at Watermans Park, Hounslow Council and the PLA are looking again at this site. The RTS supports a Heritage Harbour at Brentford of which moorings at Watermans Park could be part. Encouraging progress recently in discussions with Hounslow Council are in abeyance during the local elections.
See the events section of the website for our forward branch program, noting that the Twickenham stroll is now a day later than had been advertised in the Spring Thames Guardian (ie now to be Friday 29th May), followed by an exploration of Chiswick Eyot (19th June).
Hilary Pereira
Branch Chairman
