Peak UK Kayaking Ltd manufactures clothing and other materials for water sports including canoeing, kayaking and paddleboarding, saying it has supplied world and Olympic champions since 1990.

Mr Astles said: “For several years the company’s charity ‘British Canoeing Club, Paddle Peak’ has been introducing local children, whatever their background, to the blue spaces and every August bank holiday since 2018 , more than 1,000 local children were taken kayaking on the Cromford. Canal as part of Cromford Mills Adventure Weekend.

He said the association’s goal is to provide local children with a “relationship with the canal as well as a permanent space to come back and properly learn kayaking.”

Currently, Paddle Peak does not have a base near the canal and operates from Cromford Wharf.

“The proposal aims to provide both a head office for PEAK UK and a base at Paddle Peak on a unified site, allowing them to operate together more effectively and efficiently,” Mr Astles added.

The company says it has 12 employees working full-time and says that figure would increase.