Colin P Witter Lock in Stratford-upon-Avon

Just downstream from Bancroft Basin in Stratford-upon-Avon, where the river Avon and Stratford Canal meet, used to be the Lucy's Locks. These were staircase locks which allowed for a difference of nearly two and a quarter metres in height in the water level on the Avon to allow for boat navigation. These locks were filled in in 1959 [1].

They were replaced by the new Colin P Witter Lock built in the early 1970s, next to the old site of the Lucy's Locks [2]. The lock has steel girder supports due to the depth of the lock and the unstable nature of the ground. Much of the work was done by volunteers from Gloucester prison. The gates were donated by the Port of London Authority from the abandoned Grand Surrey Canal.

Head on view of the lock

A river cruise boat is in the lock

[1] Charles Hadfield and John Norris, Waterways to Stratford (David and Charles, 1968) p. 60
[2] Jamie Davies, Shakespeare's Avon - the history of a navigation (Oakwood Press, 1996) p. 141