The Residential Boat Owners Association has set out its position following the recent meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Waterways, where the realities of living afloat were discussed.
We represent a diverse community of people who live on boats as their primary residence across the United Kingdom, including working professionals, retirees, families, and individuals in vulnerable circumstances.
For those we represent, a boat is not a leisure asset. It is their home.
Despite this, residential boaters remain largely unrecognised within national housing and planning policy and do not benefit from the same legal protections afforded to land-based residents.
We believe this is a clear and significant gap in policy.
In particular, the exclusion of residential moorings from provisions relating to security of tenure has left thousands of people without the basic protections that would be expected for any form of housing.
Security of tenure is a long-established principle designed to protect individuals from unfair or arbitrary loss of their home. It does not prevent responsible estate management and typically operates alongside clear and well-defined agreements between landlords and residents.
The decision to prevent these protections from applying to residential boaters has created a position in which people living on the waterways are placed at a distinct disadvantage compared to those in land-based housing.
While we recognise the role of navigation authorities, including the Canal & River Trust, in managing their waterways, decisions taken in this context have consequences that extend beyond operational considerations and directly affect people’s homes, stability, and security.
The Residential Boat Owners Association will continue to advocate for the fair and equal treatment of residential boaters and for their proper recognition within housing and planning policy.
We remain committed to working constructively with parliamentarians, including Wendy Morton MP, and stakeholders across the waterways sector to ensure that those living afloat are no longer overlooked.