Who do i contact with a question about a river running through my village in Kent, UK?

Question

I was out canooing with some friends the other day, and this man told us we weren't allowed to be where we were. He had no reason, he merely said his superiors had said we had to move on. There are no signs to suggest we were doing anything wrong, however whenever we mentioned that it is a public river etc he said we needed to move now or he would call the police. This got me fairly frustrated and so id like to be able to contact whoever is in charge of rivers (sounds odd i know) so i can check whether we are allowed on that part of the river or not.

So, my question.... who is the best person i could contact to get this sort of information?

Thanks in advance!

Lukr

Answer 1

British Waterways (http://www.britishwaterways.co.uk/) might help.

Most navigable rivers in the UK are public.  If he was a river bailiff he should have ID.  If he's just a local busybody challenge his knowledge / authority.

Answer 2

I would contact the Kent County Council. I think that they should be able to help you. Here.. I will give you a website for the Kent County Council . The link is...

http://www.kent.gov.uk/

..And I gave you their contact information below. Good luck!! =D

Kent County Council

County Hall

Maidstone

Kent ME14 1XQ

24 hr Phone Helpline:

08458 247 247

EMAIL:   "county.hall @kent.gov.uk"