Narrow boat Shared Ownership
The original OwnerShips scheme was based on English "narrow boats" - a derivation of the working boats of 200 years ago that played a key role in the Industrial Revolution of that period. These boats need to be just under 7 feet wide and up to 70 feet long in order to travel through most parts of the UK waterways system, or up to 58 feet long to travel through the whole network. Today, that network is almost exclusively occupied by pleasure craft, although the number of boats per mile is relatively low. Indeed, particularly out of the high season, it is still possible to travel for a whole day without seeing another moving boat.
The OwnerShips Shared Ownership Scheme provides the narrow boat holidaymaker with a low cost alternative to boat hire, incorporating comfortable and luxurious private vessels.
Six new narrow boats of varying designs are built each year, and prospective owners are invited to choose which they prefer. This is considered to be a preferable arrangement to that of collecting together a group of prospective owners over a period of time before going ahead and building a boat.
As each owner purchases his/her share of a specific narrow boat, they may then "book" the use of it by means of a formal booking system that rotates from year to year so that priorities between owners change regularly. This system provides special facilities for those who are tied to school holidays, as well as the necessary flexibility to cater for, on the one hand, those who just want, say, a summer fortnight, and, on the other hand, those who want to take several weeks afloat each year.
Individual shares may be bought or sold at any time through a brokerage service. In practice, this market is relatively buoyant, where OwnerShips shares in particular are consistently sold at higher prices than the corresponding portion of the value of the whole boat. The boat may be sold completely and the group disbanded if the owners so wish, although, to date, this has only happened once across the 90+ private narrow boats currently in the scheme - when two owners liked their boat so much that they bought it from the others who were then accommodated on alternative vessels.
At the end of each season, OwnerShips organises an owners’ meeting for each boat. Prior to this meeting, owners are sent a set of itemised accounts of expenditure for the past year, along with a projection for the next. They are also invited to make their booking selections for the following year. Owners are then asked to discuss any questions regarding next year’s proposed budget, and instruct OwnerShips accordingly, as well as to choose a new mooring (or stay where they are).
The boat’s mooring may be anywhere they wish on the whole network, although, in practice, owners tend to choose from a list of OwnerShips’ recommended sites. In 2003, boats in the scheme were based at 15 different locations. OwnerShips’ own staff then supervise "changeover days", dealing with individual owners’ requests as they arise.
Whilst afloat, owners have access to a helpline that operates 7-days per week throughout the year. This is operated by marine professionals within the scheme who can offer advice about the boat and/or the canal network, and who will organise on-site assistance if required. (Across the whole scheme, OwnerShips consistently achieves less than one breakdown per boat per year).
In general, OwnerShips sees its function as taking all the hassle (and
cost) out of private narrow boat ownership and leaving owners with only
the pleasures involved.
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