30 C O N T E X T 1 4 1 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 Saturday, 20 June IHBC Annual School Saturday tours The River Wensum: Norwich’s forgotten asset? David Edleston and Prue Smith led a group from Fye Bridge along the riverside looking at how the river and the city interact. Certainly the river was important to the city. Stone was delivered by barge for the construction of the cathedral via a canal at Pull’s Ferry; commercial wharves and the Port of Norwich were established towards the Carrow Bridge end of the river. There, merchants’ halls (such as the Dragon Hall) occupied plots running down to the river. Norfolk wherries were built near Bishop’s Bridge. Mills and breweries occupied riverside sites. Today, increasing numbers of flats are being built overlooking the river. And yet... ‘The river is dead in the city,’ said our representative from the Norwich Society. It was clearly true. No one was on the river. It was devoid of almost any craft as it flowed through the city. Close to ‘The Stretch’ or Whitlingham Cut several rowing clubs send out sculls and eights but these do not generally voyage into the city. Compare this with Cambridge, some 60 miles away in the same region. Both cities were medieval centres with substantial religious institutions, trading wharves and mills. Both have great universities (come to think of it, why did UEA arrive only so recently, barely in time for me to study there?). Yet the Cam is teeming with leisure users on the almost obligatory punt trip and the river is a greatly appreciated means to see the city. The reason the Wensum in Norwich is so little used is, apparently, lack of access. In spite of the Wensum River Parkway walk, there are only two slipways, both said to be dangerous, and just three pontoons (two being council owned) and no stairs. A previous attempt to introduce punts foundered. We looked at how modern development addresses the river. The Riverside entertainment and retail park does so rather reluctantly, and blocks of flats erected near the swing bridge do so grudgingly, the developers having failed to provide riverside moorings or any reasonable quayside. However, there are stirrings of change. A Wensum Strategy Partnership including the city and county councils, Broads Authority, Norwich Society and the Environment Agency is at an initial consultation stage and will consider river access and leisure use. Complicating riverside development, all these bodies have jurisdiction or interests in the river corridor. Part of the river is within the Norfolk Broads National Park, which has separate planning powers. Some development is creating a strong sense of place. At Fye Bridge, the recent Quayside scheme Delegates on the start of the RiverWensum tour with Prue Smith and (below) by the remains of the canal at Pull’s Ferry
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