A and R Rothen Ltd - Workboats and General Plant Hire

A and R Rothen Ltd - Workboats and General Plant Hire Marine and general plant hire and contracting. All types of vessels and machinery available. Based in Warwickshire with nationwide coverage

Specialist Inland Waterways Contractors
Suppliers of Workboats & Machinery across the UK’s Canal Network
Over 40 Years of Expertise
ConstructionLine & SafeContractor Accredited

E: [email protected]
W: www.rothenworkboats.co.uk
T: 01827~717884

September already! Glad to have a welcome change from the intense heat … and we are all grateful of course for some rain...
03/09/2026

September already! Glad to have a welcome change from the intense heat … and we are all grateful of course for some rain!

Though we may have been quiet on here, August was a busy month in reality. Our team set about clearing a predictably bumper crop of floating w**d on our monthly Summer clearance of the Bradley Arm at the start of the month and they have also been assisting the Canal & River Trust and their volunteers with the supply of aggregates via water for resurfacing/improvement works on the towpaths around the ever popular Fradley Junction.

Happily we all did manage to fit some R & R in around all that too!

Can’t quite believe we are now looking ahead to the last four months of 2026.

Ps. Couldn’t not feature a picture (taken from afar and the pic then zoomed in on I might add, so as not to disturb the tiny occupants!) of the Swallows nest that appeared in the company’s outside loo this summer - we’re glad to say all chicks graduated from the nest safely … and we can now use these facilities again 😆

Happy Wednesday all! This time last week two of our trained Helmsmen and powered workboat were out assisting a local aut...
22/07/2026

Happy Wednesday all!

This time last week two of our trained Helmsmen and powered workboat were out assisting a local authority with their maintenance works on a series of lights running through a wide road bridge which crosses the Coventry Canal.

Our powered workboats, with their spacious hold areas and low hold sides are ideally suited for works such as this, providing easy canal-side access for the inspection and maintenance of assets crossing the waterway.

🎶 If you could see what I can see, when I’m cleaning windows 🎶 Assisting our client today with their routine cleaning of...
17/07/2026

🎶 If you could see what I can see, when I’m cleaning windows 🎶

Assisting our client today with their routine cleaning of a canal side property in central Birmingham this morning … and finding it difficult not to break out into a bit of George Formby!

Yes, we like to keep our references bang up to date here 👌🤭

Have a great Friday and weekend!

Another busy week here - with our guys working hard again in the heat on the July Bradley W**d Clearance, not surprising...
09/07/2026

Another busy week here - with our guys working hard again in the heat on the July Bradley W**d Clearance, not surprisingly the hot conditions have accelerated growth rates this month!

But you’ve seen all those pictures before, so we thought we’d throw it back to late Summer of 1982 and ‘Dipper’ - one of two boats which kickstarted our fleet.

‘Dipper’ is pictured here carrying Steel Piles from Coventry Basin to Fazeley for what was then British Waterways, under the watchful eye of Rachel.

‘Dipper’ is no longer in our fleet, but Rachel is still an integral part of our team 💪

Happy Thursday - stay as cool as you can!

Last week our team had the pleasure - despite the sweltering temperatures - of making a return visit to the Erewash Cana...
02/07/2026

Last week our team had the pleasure - despite the sweltering temperatures - of making a return visit to the Erewash Canal at Long Eaton.

In Autumn 2025 we undertook a vegetation clearance on behalf of local Construction company Stepnells at their Britannia Mills and Broad Street sites ahead of the installation of two footbridges across the canal, one at either site.

Fast forward to last week and the first of the two bridges - Britannia Mills - has been completed and the second bridge, which will feature a replication of the Harrington style of Lace once made in the nearby mills, is due to be completed next month.

This time our brief was to undertake more vegetation works at Broad Street and to install a small section of soft bank protection at Britannia Mills.

It’s always good to see the end results of a client’s project and already the footbridge at Britannia Mills - pictured - appears to be well used, linking a new housing development to the town centre and of course the canal too.

Today marks the beginning of , dedicated to raising the awareness of Invasive Non-Native Species of vegetation in the ...
22/06/2026

Today marks the beginning of , dedicated to raising the awareness of Invasive Non-Native Species of vegetation in the UK.

Having been tasked on numerous occasions in recent years to assist the Canal & River Trust and other local agencies in the removal of Floating Pennywort - an Invasive Non-native species that can found on our UK Canals and Rivers - we thought we’d do our bit for raising awareness of this particular species.

Floating Pennywort was introduced to the UK in the 1980s as an ornamental pond plant - however it is now recognised as being so detrimental to native flora and fauna, it is now illegal to allow or cause this w**d to grow.

In warmer weather it can grow as quickly as 20cm per day and forms in dense floating mats which smother habitats, impede water flow and cause oxygen depletion, crowd out other plants and even create the ideal conditions for Mosquito breeding.

In addition, it forms so densely that it can easily bring even powered boats to a stand still and fishing equipment can quickly become tangled in it too.

Luckily it is quite easy to identify with its bright shiny green, kidney shaped leaves which at 7cm approx in diameter are much larger than native marsh Pennywort, which has smaller, rounder leaves (around 1.5cm in diameter) and ground rooted stems.

So if you happen to spot Floating Pennywort on a Canal or River anytime, be sure to call the Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60 or CRT on 0300 040 4040

Here are some images from a few years back now of our team working on the Fens Pool Feeder in Pensnett, Birmingham - clearing as vast swathe of Pennywort that had taken hold there.

Some of our team have been working on the Farmers Bridge flight today, assisting the Canal & River Trust and their trust...
18/06/2026

Some of our team have been working on the Farmers Bridge flight today, assisting the Canal & River Trust and their trusted Arborists in the removal of some rather large bushes growing out of brickwork on the offside and encroaching this busy part of the navigation.

We think they’ve all done a fantastic job and to be enjoying some sunny boating rather than last week’s miserable stuff is a plus too!

Size doesn’t matter they say … unless you’re collecting vast swathes of floating w**d, in which case you’re going to nee...
11/06/2026

Size doesn’t matter they say … unless you’re collecting vast swathes of floating w**d, in which case you’re going to need a whopper of a Hopper, or three!

We were back on the Bradley Arm last week for the second of six monthly, week long visits to this important feeder arm. Each visit we cut and collect the w**d which grows along the arm, and onto the mainline, in abundance during the summer months.

Our skilled operators, Conver w**d vessels, tug and hoppers all worked tirelessly - through all kinds of weather - each day and filled a total of 3 x 70ft carrying Hoppers.

With each hopper carrying between 18-20 tonnes, it’s fair to say the navigation has now been thoroughly cleared and most importantly the water supply to the wider Birmingham Canal navigations are being maintained as a result.

Roll on next month’s cut!

Thought we’d take a trip down memory lane to mark National Volunteers Week this week …We’ve had the pleasure of supplyin...
03/06/2026

Thought we’d take a trip down memory lane to mark National Volunteers Week this week …

We’ve had the pleasure of supplying many vessels, equipment and materials over the years to assist the fantastic efforts of the Canal & River Trust ‘s volunteers - the aptly named ‘Towpath Taskforce’.

Up and down the network you can find them, removing litter, caring for towpaths, fences, steps, prepping, painting and planting, as well as helping lockside too.

Thanks for all you do guys!

Photos kindly provided by various CRT volunteers over the years (including some very recent pics) - thank you for sharing these with us too 📷

This week sees us back on the Bradley Arm at Bilston - and onto the Mainline around Deepfields Junction - undertaking th...
06/05/2026

This week sees us back on the Bradley Arm at Bilston - and onto the Mainline around Deepfields Junction - undertaking the first cut and clearance of this important feeder arm on behalf of the Canal & River Trust.

There are five scheduled cuts - one week of cutting and clearing per month from May until September - which should keep the water to the wider navigation flowing freely this summer as a result🤞

Our two Conver w**d cutters have spent the past two days cutting the w**ds which grow from the canal bed and will spend the remainder of the week collecting the cut w**ds using our Pusher Tug and Materials Carrying Hoppers.

Glad to say it’s been a sunny week for it so far!

Address

White Gate Farm Quarry Lane, Mancetter
Atherstone
CV92RB

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 6pm
Tuesday 8am - 6pm
Wednesday 8am - 6pm
Thursday 8am - 6pm
Friday 8am - 6pm

Telephone

+441827717884

Website

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