This is one of the locks on the River Medway Navigation near Maidstone; originally installed in the late 1790s, it was most recently refurbished and re-opened in 2017. The opening coincided with the annual Court of Survey Cruise along the river.
The practice dates back to 1559, when Queen Elizabeth I granted the town, then a tidal fishing port, the right to inspect the waterway. In 1619 King James I extended these privileges to cover the keeping of swans and cygnets, meaning Maidstone is the only borough in England where the swans belong to the mayor rather than the monarch. The practice, called swan upping, was revived in 1975. (Thanks to Wikipedia for the detail).
And the lock is full to catch those lovely sky reflections. Great capture. I have a soft spot for all things waterways having worked for British Waterways in my 20s.
Katharine
My ggg grandfather was a lock keeper in Yorkshire.