CANAL boater George Ward, who was made homeless after one of his narrowboats was sunk four years ago by group of stag party revellers, has been threatened with legal action.

The Canal & River Trust, the charity that runs Britain’s canals and inland waterways, has given him 14 days to remove his two boats moored on the Kennet & Avon Canal close to the Smelly Swing Bridge between Bradford on Avon and Avoncliff.

Mr Ward was issued with the legal notice yesterday (October 24) and will have to move his narrowboats, the 50-ft March Hare and the 70-ft Celtic by Sunday, November 6.

Trust officers delivered statutory notices to Mr Ward on September 12 asking him to remove the boats from the canals and inland waterways that it controls.

Mr Ward, 61, said: “I am sick of it. I am very disillusioned. They are fully aware of my circumstances because their staff have created this situation.

“It’s unlikely that I will be able to move the boats because I would require assistance to move stuff onto the boats.”

Mr Ward says he has been subjected to a “campaign” of harassment and victimisation by the Trust since August 2020 in their attempts to make him move on.

Mr Ward was made homeless after the Celtic, was sunk by a group of drunken revellers speeding along the canal towards Bath in two hire boats.

He was forced to abandon the Celtic in the early hours of the morning on September 22, 2018, when it started to sink.

The boat had been swamped on Friday evening by the wash from hire boats chartered by a group of men at Hilperton Marina who were going too fast.

Friends and members of the public later donated more than £7,400 through a JustGiving appeal to help him buy tools and equipment to refloat the boat and restore it to its former condition.

But Mr Ward says his efforts to renovate and refurbish the boat have been hampered by the weather, the lack of assistance, and the Trust removing the tools he needs to complete the work.

While working on his boat, he lived in a tent on the canal towpath for up to two years but passers-by complained about the “eyesore” site.

He claims to have been threatened by the Trust’s staff and bailiffs serving notices, and that they have tried to provoke him into assaulting staff.

Mr Ward appeared in court on July 21 last year to face public order charges following allegations made by Trust staff which he denies.

The Trust’s letter today says: “Following the expiry of the notices, the boat remains unlawfully moored on our waterway.

“The purpose of this letter is to put you on formal written notice that in the event that you fail to remove the boat from the canals and inland waterways and/or controlled by us within 14 days from the date of this letter, court proceedings will then be issued against you in the County Court immediately without further notice.”

The Trust’s notice seeks a declaration from the court that entitles it to remove the boats from the canal 14 days after the date of the order.

The charity, based in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, also wants to obtain an injunction to restrain Mr Ward from mooring his boats on or next to any part of its inland waterways, plus an order for court costs.

It adds: “We trust that this will not become necessary and that you will remove the boat from the canals and inland waterways owned and/or controlled by us within the next 14 days.”