06/06/2025
In the heart of East London, our women's boat club has been making a splash, as it featured on both BBC Radio London and BBC London News on Thursday 5 June.
You can also discover more about the boat club and the women taking part below.
Oar and Explore is an all-women, majority- Muslim boat club based in Tower Hamlets, using paddle sports to build confidence, boost wellbeing, and grow community leadership. Delivered in partnership by Poplar HARCA and East London Canal Access Network, the club was created to offer safe, inclusive access to local blue spaces.
Many Muslim and global majority women face cultural, financial, and social barriers to water sports – including limited access to inclusive facilities, the cost of participation, and the need for culturally appropriate kit. Oar and Explore is leading efforts to change that.
To make the sessions accessible, the introductory paddle safety programme is free of charge with the weekly boat club sessions offered at a low-cost community rate. Sessions are scheduled around school hours and at weekends, with changing rooms provided. Participants can wear cultural clothing and, importantly, they don’t need to be able to swim.
Naseema, one of the club’s earliest participants, says: “Before I started, I had a fear of deep-water swimming. Now, thanks to the boat club, I’ve gained confidence in the water and really enjoy all kinds of water sports. I’ve even been white water rafting, which was a lifelong ambition of mine!”
Since its launch in 2022, the club has trained nine certified female instructors and engaged over 120 women in paddle sessions along the Limehouse Cut and other local waterways. The instructors come from a variety of cultural backgrounds, reflecting the diversity of East London itself.
Tanjina, another of the club’s participants said: “I’ve struggled with anxiety for many years, but thanks to the Boat Club, I feel empowered to achieve more. I’m keen to help other women struggling with their mental health to experience the joy this has bought me and many others.” You can read more about her story here.
Terri Calbraith, our Communities and Neighbourhoods Area Co-ordinator, says: “Oar and Explore is more than just a boat club. As well as improving access to paddle sports for women and championing our local blue spaces, it’s also fostered real friendships, sisterhood, and new opportunities. The Limehouse Cut has long been underused, but our club makes it a lively and welcoming place for local residents.”
Alongside Poplar HARCA and ELCAN, the boat club was made possible with the support of key partners and funders including Canal & River Trust, Active Thames, London Sport, Paddle UK, Tideway, The Canoe Foundation, and Hill Group. Hill Group’s contribution was provided through Poplar HARCA and Hill Group’s Teviot LLP Community Chest Fund, as part of the LLP’s commitment to delivering meaningful benefits to the wider community through the regeneration of the Teviot estate.
The boat club is also part of Poplar HARCA’s wider commitment to increase access to outdoor sports for underrepresented groups, including women’s football and cricket teams and free family cycling events. Plans are also underway to install a new pontoon along the Limehouse Cut, beside the Teviot estate, to offer greater access to the canal for both recreational and educational activities.
Together, these initiatives are helping women and families to feel more confident, connected to, and included in East London’s outdoor spaces.
To register your interest to our Women’s Only boat club, email partnerships@poplarharca.co.uk
