ESSEX WATERWAYS NAVIGATION TRUST

Registered charity 1212502 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

The charity, along with its trading subsidiary Essex Waterways Ltd, manages the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation in Essex for public benefit.

Objects

THE OBJECTS OF THE CHARITY ARE FOR THE PUBLIC BENEFIT AND SPECIFICALLY RESTRICTED TO:2.1 THE RESTORATION, PRESERVATION, PROTECTION, IMPROVEMENT, OPERATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE CHELMER AND BLACKWATER NAVIGATION AND ANY EXTENSION TO THE EXISTING WATERWAYS (THE "NAVIGATION"):2.1.1 FOR NAVIGATION;2.1.2 FOR WALKING ON THE TOWPATHS; AND2.1.3 FOR RECREATION OR OTHER LEISURE TIME PURSUITS OF THE PUBLIC IN THE INTERESTS OF THEIR HEALTH AND SOCIAL WELFARE. 2.2 PROTECTING AND CONSERVING SITES, OBJECTS AND BUILDINGS OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL, ARCHITECTURAL, ENGINEERING OR HISTORIC INTEREST ON, IN THE VICINITY OF, OR OTHERWISE ASSOCIATED WITH, THE NAVIGATION.2.3 PROMOTING AWARENESS, LEARNING AND EDUCATION ABOUT THE NAVIGATION, ITS HISTORY, DEVELOPMENT, USE, OPERATION AND CULTURAL HERITAGE.

The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.

Causes: Environment/conservation/heritage · Recreation · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Chelmsford, East of England, England (from the postcode on the register)

Latest income

£1.3m

Latest spending

£648k

Registered

2025

Accounts read

FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity achieved a surplus of £697,000 for the period ended 31 December 2025, resulting in unrestricted reserves of the same amount. Per the trustees' report, the organization maintains a reserves policy targeting approximately four months of budgeted unrestricted expenditure, meaning current reserves significantly exceed this target. The trustees and auditors confirm the charity is a going concern with adequate resources to continue operations.

Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: approximately an average of 4 months of budgeted group unrestricted expenditure plus any outstanding restricted funds e.g. (2026 Budget £318k). Of this amount, a minimum of £100,000 should be available for immediate use. (reserves figure: £697k)

“Based on risk assessments it has carried out, concluded that Essex Waterways Navigation Trust’s cash reserves (defined as available immediately and within 1 month) should lie at approximately an average of 4 months of budgeted group unrestricted expenditure plus any outstanding restricted funds e.g. (2026 Budget £318k). Of this amount, a minimum of £100,000 should be available for immediate use.” — page 6

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Purchased goods from Chandler Material Supplies Limited, a company controlled by family members related to a director.

“During the period the company purchased goods totalling £10,387 from Chandler Material Supplies Limited, a company controlled by family members related to a director.” — page 30

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Trading subsidiary: Essex Waterways Limited

“The organisation was formed with the intention of acquiring Essex Waterways Limited, a private trading subsidiary of The Inland Waterways Association.” — page 4

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts audited by Saffery LLP. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Policies the charity declares

In its annual return the charity told the Commission that it has the policies listed below. This is self-declared: it is not verified by the Commission or by this site, and it is not evidence of how a policy works in practice.

Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
Complaints handling
Conflicting interests
Financial reserves policy and procedures
Paying staff
Risk management
Volunteer management

From the charity’s annual return (Part A, self-declared)

Answers and figures the charity gave in Part A of its annual return to the Charity Commission. They are self-declared: not verified by the Commission or by this site. Only positive answers and figures are listed; items not listed are simply not shown.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2025

Volunteers: 60
Government income: £3,266 — grants £3,266 (1); under 1% of the £1,345,123 total gross income on the same return
Has a trading subsidiary

Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

Corporate structure

Trading subsidiary: ESSEX WATERWAYS LIMITED Companies House 05545459 · Financial health read from its filings
Registered company of the charity Companies House 16132674

ESSEX WATERWAYS LIMITED — per its own Companies House accounts

Turnover: £926k
Profit before tax: £303k
Donated/gift-aided to the charity: £130k

“Distributions to parent charity under gift aid Amounts paid 130,223”

Leadership, per the charity’s website

Colin Edmond — Director (source)

Listed on the charity’s own website when we last crawled it; roles may have changed. Pay-band disclosures above are anonymous statutory disclosures and are not attributed to any named individual.

Company officers (Companies House)

Current officers of the charity’s own company per the Companies House register, cross-checked against the Charity Commission trustee list by name. A director not on the trustee list is usually a timing or naming difference between the two registers — check both records before drawing conclusions.

LOADER, Rebecca — director, appointed 07/11/2025on trustee list
POMFRET, John Richard — director, appointed 02/05/2025on trustee list
FULTON, Christopher Glen Leigh — director, appointed 02/05/2025on trustee list
JENKINS, James Eric — director, appointed 31/03/2025on trustee list
EDMOND, Colin Mark Hunter — director, appointed 31/03/2025on trustee list
EDWARDS, Neil Bruce — director, appointed 12/12/2024on trustee list
CHANDLER, Roy Edgar — director, appointed 12/12/2024on trustee list
EDWARDS, Neil Bruce — secretary, appointed 12/12/2024

Official officers record.

Property (HM Land Registry)

3 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (1 freehold). All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/12/2025)

Total income

£1.3m

Total spending

£648k

Cost of raising funds

£420k

Reserves (reported)

£697k

Employees

Reported reserves equal ~12.9 months of spending — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 4.7 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Other trading activities (60% of income) — components as reported reconcile to the return’s total income; not from the accounts narrative.

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 31.2% of total income — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 5.3%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

Christopher Glen Leigh Fulton
Colin Mark Hunter Edmond
James Eric Jenkins
John Richard Pomfret
Neil Edwards
ROY EDGAR CHANDLER · trustee of 1 other charity
Rebecca Loader

Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).

Operates in: Essex

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/12/2025	£1.3m	£648k

Common questions

Is ESSEX WATERWAYS NAVIGATION TRUST financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity achieved a surplus of £697,000 for the period ended 31 December 2025, resulting in unrestricted reserves of the same amount. Per the trustees' report, the organization maintains a reserves policy targeting approximately four months of budgeted unrestricted expenditure, meaning current reserves significantly exceed this target. The trustees and auditors confirm the charity is a going concern with adequate resources to continue operations. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by Saffery LLP.

Who funds ESSEX WATERWAYS NAVIGATION TRUST?

Funders whose own accounts filings name ESSEX WATERWAYS NAVIGATION TRUST as a grant recipient include THE INLAND WATERWAYS ASSOCIATION.

Known funders

Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.

Funder	Year	Amount	Purpose (as stated by the funder)
THE INLAND WATERWAYS ASSOCIATION	FY2025	£145k	Donation/Grant to former subsidiary's successor charity

Funders of similar charities

Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.

Funder	Similar charities funded	Amount to them
JOHN SWIRE 1989 CHARITABLE TRUST	2	£82k
THE AIM FOUNDATION	2	£50k
THE FIDELITY UK FOUNDATION	1	£384k
ROYAL SOCIETY OF WILDLIFE TRUSTS	1	£317k
THE VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST	1	£138k
JOHN ELLERMAN FOUNDATION	1	£120k
THE WOODLAND TRUST	1	£85k
THE DERBYSHIRE ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST LIMITED	1	£16k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with ESSEX AND SUFFOLK RIVERS TRUST.

ESSEX AND SUFFOLK RIVERS TRUST income £963k
EAST YORKSHIRE RIVERS TRUST income £147k
Accessible Boating Thames income £86k
THE RIVER STOUR TRUST LIMITED income £164k
ESSEX WILDLIFE TRUST LIMITED income £10.0m
THE RIVERS TRUST income £10.5m

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Staff >£60k	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
ESSEX WATERWAYS NAVIGATION TRUST	£1.3m	—	0	above	—	no doubt
ESSEX AND SUFFOLK RIVERS TRUST FY2025	£963k	—	0	above	—	no doubt
EAST YORKSHIRE RIVERS TRUST FY2025	£147k	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt
Accessible Boating Thames FY2025	£86k	—	0	below	—	no doubt
THE RIVER STOUR TRUST LIMITED FY2025	£164k	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt
ESSEX WILDLIFE TRUST LIMITED FY2024	£10.0m	—	—	above	—	no doubt

Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.