Hythe Boaters

24/01/2026

Hello followers!

Happy new year to you, (we know it’s late 🫣😂)……

Thank you again for your support and interest in what is happening to residents at King Edward Quay, apologies for the silence but with Christmas, busy lives and the stress of the situation, it’s taken some time to get to this point…..

Update:
Although discussions are ongoing, transparency is still very lacking and complaints have been ignored and prejudice displayed from some key members of the Council towards the residents, stating “they have an imperfect view of the residents” without having ever known or met them to form such an opinion!

When the residents have expressed their concern regarding being made homeless, they have been dismissed and told that as they have a boat to live in, they will not be homeless but this is factually incorrect, if you live aboard but have lost the place to moor, you are classed as homeless (https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/homeownership/living_on_a_boat)

Members of the Estate team just simply pass the details on for Colchester Borough Homes, which feels insensitive and dismissive. Even if residents gave up their houseboats to sign up to housing, they would not be prioritised and this would also cause further unnecessary strain on the housing register, which surely as a Council, they would want to avoid?

Although an extension was granted to meet certain conditions in the license (which were previously ignored by the council for years), so residents were no longer facing displacement or homelessness before Christmas, the council’s lack of knowledge (or some may argue ignorance) regarding the reality of meeting these conditions by March is shocking. They don’t seem to understand (or care) that booking in works and moving boats is very difficult as everything is completely tide and weather dependent and these works cannot all be completed by March.. Many local boatyards have waiting lists for such works, so the extension is still not enough time and other available mooring positions are scarce. Additionally, the council are also not guaranteeing to hold the mooring spaces for current residents if they leave to carry out such works to meet the conditions, so residents are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. This is unfair, unreasonable and seems a blatant removal tactic to rid the quay of its current residents, rather than an actual effort to ensure license conditions are met whilst working together with existing residents in good faith.

Two houseboats have now left the quay due to the Council’s actions and behaviour as the stress and uncertainties became too much to bear. Luckily, they’ve been able to find moorings elsewhere but this was not easy and moving to a new location impacts on work and other aspects of life.

The residents have, however, received support from local MP Sir Bernard Jenkin who recognises the unreasonable way residents are being treated and steps are being taken to try and negotiate new terms and a way forward that doesn’t further displace any other existing residents.

We will keep you updated with progressions as they happen. Thanks again for your support 🙏🏻

Find out about boat licences and moorings, continuous cruising rules, benefits and council tax if you live on a boat or want to rent one.

24/12/2025

Thank you to all of our followers for your support with our unfortunate situation. Although an extension has been granted, it’s still not long enough and residents continue to face displacement and homelessness. There is so much to say but for now, we’ll do our best to celebrate Christmas. Thanks again…



Merry Christmas to you all 🙏🏻 🎄

03/12/2025

Thank you to everyone who has shared our press release and offered words of concern and support, we greatly appreciate it.

We thank the Colchester Gazette for running an article on the situation, and although there’s some further information which could be said and corrected, ultimately, we welcome the Council’s extension, which removes the immediate threat of displacement right before Christmas. Residents now very much hope to engage in constructive discussions with the Council without delay, so that together a secure and realistic, long-term strategy for the sustainable management of this much-valued community resource and the residents who rely on it, can be achieved.

We will keep you updated with developments but for now, at least we can breathe….

https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/25664697.colchester-council-responds-king-edwards-quay-complaints/?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwQ0xDSwOcu25leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeaHB9ECGcdunPweNiLJdfX7CWGYx2W3nkXOWTgFKx50D7TjgHF2FU7SVInlk_aem_aLQIu42w1OxwUa7_LO6cOA =1764690856

The council has agreed to a three-month extension, with new licence arrangements now starting on March 26 instead of January 26

01/12/2025

***********PRESS RELEASE*****************

For Immediate Release

Residents of King Edward Quay challenge Colchester City Council over sudden five-fold increase of Mooring Fees and potential eviction.

Long-standing liveaboard residents at King Edward Quay are seeking to challenge Colchester City Council’s proposal to increase annual mooring fees by five-fold over the next three years, resulting in the license fee being payable in full upfront and sudden heavy-handed enforcement of licence conditions that the Council have not enforced and ignored since 2017 with minimal notice - measures they describe as disproportionate, and potentially unlawful.

These actions give the strong impression that the Council is attempting to pressure or displace the longstanding liveaboard community rather than engage with them through any fair or transparent process.

King Edward Quay has been home to a stable community of liveaboard residents, some who lived on the Quay for 35 years, and support the local economy, and contribute to the cultural character of the waterfront. They have created a community garden promoting and supporting natural wildlife and improving aesthetics of the area and carried out clean-ups of the Quay and have carried out many rescues for people and animals who have fallen into the water using their own life saving equipment as the Council have failed to provide life saving equipment on the Quay themselves, despite many calls for this, demonstrating serious negligence. Now, residents say the Council have abruptly imposed a dramatic fee increase without any meaningful consultation and without providing the services or infrastructure that would justify such costs and have given residents only 5-weeks notice to carry out large, costly assessments of their boats (assessments which are not suitable to be carried out during the Winter), and stating that they will have to vacate King Edward Quay by the 19th December if these works are not carried out, which would render many homeless, a week before Christmas!

Residents Say Colchester City Council Is Incorrectly Comparing a Basic Quayside with no facilities to Premium Marinas:

The Council’s justification for the increase relies on comparisons with high-end marinas which offer extensive facilities such as 24/7 security, staffed harbour offices, maintained pontoons, and full amenities. By contrast, King Edward Quay provides none of these services. It is a simple quayside with minimal infrastructure, and residents are responsible for arranging electricity and most maintenance themselves.

Residents argue that the Council’s approach represents an arbitrary and unfair fee escalation designed to generate revenue rather than reflect genuine service provision.

Residents emphasise that they are not opposed to fair, transparent, and properly justified fee structures. Their request is simple: open dialogue, proper consultation, and a representative to have a seat at the table regarding decision-making and more time to realistically meet their demands for surveys of the boats.

“We are a stable, long-established community, not a marina,” said a spokesperson for the King Edward Quay Residents’ Group. “The Council’s idea to drastically increase fees while providing none of the facilities of a marina is unreasonable, unsupported by evidence, and harmful to residents who have lived here for years. We are asking the Council to engage with us properly before pursuing action that could displace an entire community These proposals have caused huge amounts of stress and anxiety”.

Residents Invite Media and Public Attention

The King Edward Quay community is encouraging journalists, the public, and local representatives to examine the issue closely and to hold Colchester City Council accountable for the impact of its proposals.

Media Contact - Please contact The Hythe Boaters page by direct message in the first instance where you will be connected with a resident and representative to speak with further.

Many thanks in advance and we hope for your support.

30/11/2025

Please keep a look out on our page for some very important news, which we’ll be sharing with you tomorrow. Your support will be appreciated…….

30/11/2025

And another rescue…… 😢

A heroic resident put himself at risk to save the life of a dog which was left to die in the river Colne.

30/11/2025

Thank you to all new followers 🙏🏻 You may have noticed that we’ve been sharing previous rescue stories on our page. These are only just some incidents that have happened, which have made the local news, there’s been many more and all rescues have been made ourselves with our own life saving equipment and boats, as there’s no life saving equipment available on King Edward Quay supplied by Colchester Council, as there should be, as per their own License stipulations……

29/11/2025

Yet another rescue by residents…..

https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/23781499.colchester-hythe-rescue-sees-man-save-child-drowning/

A HAVE-A-GO-HERO leaped into action and into the water as he helped save a child which had got into difficulty in the water in Colchester.

28/11/2025

to another incident of a person falling into the river where the residents had to assist (no life saving equipment provided on the quay!)

https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/17890494.video-man-falls-river-king-edward-quay/

CALLS for more street lights have been made after a man fell off a quayside.

12/11/2025

… Residents helping people out of the water with their own life saving equipment as there’s none provided on King Edward Quay

https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/11830330.woman-rescued-after-becoming-stuck-in-the-mud-near-king-edward-quay-colchester/

A YOUNG woman had a lucky escape after getting stuck in the muddy banks of the River Colne.