About Us

What we are trying to do - our charitable objects

(1) To conserve, protect, rehabilitate and improve the rivers, streams, watercourses and water impoundments of the catchments comprising the Thames tributaries located within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (ANOB),  for the advancement of environmental protection or improvement for the benefit of the public.



(2) To advance the education of the public, or any association, institution, voluntary organisation, company, local authority, administrative or governmental agency or public body in:-

(A) The understanding of rivers, river corridors and river catchments, including their fauna, flora, biodiversity, economic or social activity and river catchment management.

(B) The need for, and benefits of, conservation, protection, rehabilitation and improvement of aquatic environments.

Memorandum and articles incorporated 17/03/2011 as amended by special resolutions dated 11/10/2012 as registered at Companies House on 15/10/2012

Our vision for the Cotswold Rivers: vibrant and healthy waterways for everyone.

‍We are an independent charity established to protect and enhance the rivers of the Cotswolds. We are living through a time of great change. We are in the middle of a Biodiversity Crisis, and a Climate Emergency. We are witnessing disastrous loss of habitat, collapse of ecosystems, erosion of precious soils, increased flooding and devastating drought. We are also experiencing huge challenges from sewage pollution and this has lead to the establishment of another local organisation with a specific focus on the sewage issue: Windrush Against Sewage Pollution.

The Windrush Catchment Partnership has been formed to drive improvements to river quality throughout the catchment area. The team works to engage with all partners along the river to identify challenges and to improve practice where ever possible to benefit the river environment.

At the trust we are fighting for a future where our children and grand children can enjoy healthy vibrant rivers teeming with aquatic life – from wild brown trout, grayling and the European eel. We want to preserve these special places for everyone to enjoy – to walk, play, swim, paddle and make lasting memories. 

Can you help? We need support from volunteers, donors and partners to ensure we can spread our message and make a difference on the river.

Our Team

We are passionate about rivers, their wildlife and the people who love them. We hope you are inspired by our work and that you want to make a difference, with us or on your own river. 

We are a team of passionate and enthusiastic river champions. Our motto is ‘we get our feet wet’ – meaning we make things happen on the ground and constantly strive to make a real and positive difference for the river and its communities.

‍River restoration

‍Our river restoration team are experts in freshwater ecology, research and monitoring, as well as having the practical knowledge and skills to manage in-stream improvements for fish and other wildlife.

We do things like:

·   Removing artificial obstacles and barriers or installing new fish passes so fish can move freely up or down the river

·   Naturalising river channels that have been straightened and modified so that they provide better wildlife habitats and reduce flooding risk

·   Surveys and monitoring to understand more about the health of the river, freshwater species and how they are impacted by human activities

‍Community engagement

‍Our community engagement team work hard to share our enthusiasm and passion for rivers through a wide variety of activities to help people feel the benefits of vibrant healthy rivers 

Our work includes:

·   Inspiring children by running trips and activities for schools with curriculum areas such as art, science, technology, and engineering

·   Varied volunteering opportunities including river clean-ups, tree planting and helping us behind the scenes

·   Citizen Science programmes where people can gain skills to help collect data and contribute to important scientific monitoring

‍Land management, a developing project

‍Our team of knowledgeable farm and wildlife advisors are out in all weathers working with landowners to identify the potential economic as well as environmental benefits of sustainable land management practices.

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