All Aboard

People Know How and Polwarth Parish Church run and maintain a canal boat named All Aboard, moored at the Polwarth Pontoon on the Union Canal. The space aims to nurture community cohesion and wellbeing, supporting the community as it recovers from coronavirus.

The partnership was launched in June 2019 and was followed by a successful pilot project including consultations, events and activities on a chartered canal boat, including projects and events for young people and the community. The pilot demonstrated the importance of providing a space for wellbeing and community cohesion and the response we received from participants was overwhelmingly positive.

In February of this year, we finalised the purchase of our own custom-built canal boat, and in June that boat was craned into the Union Canal. Since then, we have been getting it ready for its official launch.

Join us on Doors Open Days weekend from 2pm-4pm on 25 September 2021 for our official boat launch. Take a look on board the new boat and find out about our many opportunities to get involved with All Aboard! We’re currently looking for crew and helmsman volunteers to support the running of the boat, taking young people, families and adults on trips on the canal. There are also opportunities to provide support on the boat through art, music, meditation or any other ideas you might have!

If you can’t join us in person, please enjoy a virtual visit below to a pilot project we ran on Sorted’s boat Panacea last year, or have a wander through this interactive map on our website from a campaign we curated last summer, documenting history and memories of the Union Canal.