The organisation follows on from a long line of public and private activity to promote the rivers, from Sheffield Corpoation reclaiming the upper reaches of the Porter and creating parks along its course from 1885 onwards, to the Five Weirs Walk Trust, who successfully campaigned during the 1980s to get access to the River Don between the city centre and Meadowhall. The trust believe that similar action on the lower Sheaf and Porter is required, as an easy way to improve bio-diversity, together with the health and well-being of the increasing number of people who are now living in the inner city. At the time of formation, there were significant re-development projects taking place on the lower Porter, which gave scope to daylight the river and create public spaces. The Decathlon Sportswear outlet have been persuaded not to replace the culvert roof where their carpark had collapsed into the river, and the Trust are working with the Environment Agency to ensure that the exposed river gets re-naturalised. They have also negotiated with the BBC, where the river runs beneath the car park. It included a section where the exposed river was totally overgrown with buddleia, to the extent that the owners did not realise there was a river. The buddleia will be cut down, to let light into the river.