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Over many years residents of the area had been complaining about the state of the brook running alongside the Trent and Mersey canal. It had become a dumping ground for rubbish.

Residents remembered the time when Kingfishers were common along the length of the brook and this is what led to the name of the Project.

About the Brook
The brook is a drainage channel that drains about 50% of Burton's surface water; it flows through 4 wards of Burton-upon-Trent.

The brook is valuable for several reasons including: flood control; residential and commercial water supply; nature and biodiversity. It is also a historical and educational area for residents and schools.

A residents meeting took place on May 24th 2005 which was attended by residents from two local Resident Associations; the co-ordinator of Burton Conservation Volunteers; a Community Police Support Officer; Trent & Dove Housing Association; six councillors as well as many residents and children.

Doctor Scott Jones, (Mind the Gap Training and Consultants) who was at that time a member of staff at The Heart of Burton Partnership, facilitated the meeting.

The aim of the meeting was to find out what was good and what was bad about the brook and the surrounding area.

Some of the bad points were noted as:- Dog fouling; degraded water course and overgrown banks; fly tipping; sites of low level drug and alcohol abuse; ownership and responsibility of banks along the Channel.

In November 2005 a meeting of 26 people representing most of the agencies who had some working connection with the project area was held.

All were enthusiastic about the aims of the project and expressed a willingness to provide assistance where possible.

In March 2006 residents felt confident and able to 'adopt' the project and the Kingfisher Project Management Group was formed, facilitated by staff from Trent & Dove Housing and the Heart of Burton Partnership.