Published on behalf of Angling Trust & Fish Legal, Eastwood House, 6 Rainbow Street, Leominster, Herefordshire, HR6 8DQ
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How we intend to protect, promote and develop fish, fishing and the environment
On his love for nature and how he nearly missed out on that record carp
Nearly 300 angling clubs join Water Quality Monitoring Network to fight for cleaner rivers
The Fish Legal court case that affects your local water – and how you can support us
Fish Legal’s call for change leads to Welsh review of toxic organic waste
How a Voluntary Bailiff’s kind act led to formation of angling club for local children
Introducing thousands of children to fishing through our Get Fishing and Reel Education campaigns
The volunteer army cracking down on fish theft and poaching all over the country
Our Anglers Against Litters campaign is inspiring anglers to protect our waters
On childhood memories, catching her first salmon and why there’s no place like home
How rod licence money is being used to protect our waters from predators
all
Passing on your knowledge to the next generation of anglers
Safeguarding the future of one of the UK’s favourite freshwater fish
Partnership plotting a sustainable future in the southwest
Anglers and scientists discovering the secret lives of a summer favourite
Transatlantic collaboration helping to preserve a globally threatened species
The campaigns and projects fighting for recreational sea anglers and coastal communities
How our Talent Pathway is helping develop the skills of England’s youth
Another busy year for our England teams in coarse, sea and game
The 12 Nationals and high-profile individual finals fished by thousands of anglers
Where the Angling Trust and Fish Legal income comes from and how we spend our money
A thank-you to all our Trade Associate members and sponsors for supporting our work
Protect, Promote, Develop –fighting for fish, fishing and the environment
CEO
Jamie Cook reflects on the vital work carried out by Angling Trust and Fish Legal on behalf of coarse, sea and game anglers
It’s always a pleasure to sit down and draft this section for our annual magazine. As a child I grew up with an ACA sticker in the car window and so I take immense pride in leading both successor organisations in our fight for fish, fishing and the environment.
When I take a step back, I often struggle with where to start in my review of the year. What I realise is that Angling Trust and Fish Legal mean so many different things to so many different people and communities within angling, and that as a result we take on a huge amount of work for an organisation with less than 80 staff. The truth is that in our mission to protect, promote and develop angling for all we set ourselves a huge task.
“You can’t be all things to all people,” I am often told. Whilst this is absolutely true, as organisations we have to reflect the diversity of our community and our
membership. We all fish for different reasons and equally, as you read the following pages, you will see that there are many different reasons why individuals, clubs, fisheries, syndicates and skippers join our organisations and why our scope and influence continue to expand in a multitude of areas.
Protecting waterways since 1948
For some, our mission to protect fish, fishing and the environment is key to why they support us. The Angling Trust have driven the fight for protection of our waterways and adopted this baton from the ACA since its formation in 1948. In a year which saw a fairly seismic swing in domestic politics, it is testament to the work of our team and our phenomenal volunteer network that environmental issues, and more specifically water pollution, were at the top of political manifestos for the
first time ever. Within hours of their appointments new Ministers were in touch with us to discuss the way forward as key stakeholders in both freshwater and saltwater matters. The incoming Secretary of State endorsed the Angling Trust manifesto for angling in the lead up to July’s General Election showing that angling has that strong and influential voice that it so richly deserves as an industry worth over £4bn per year to the economy and employing thousands of people, not to mention being one of the most participated in forms of beneficial outdoor recreation.
Fish Legal have yet again shown how the unique partnership with the Angling Trust, combining campaigning, lobbying, advocacy, local activism, community engagement and legal force, can drive seismic change in the protection of our environment. The landmark Costa Beck case in partnership with the Pickering Fishery Association has truly profound impacts and ramifications. Many worthy causes ask for donations from people who have a desire to protect our environment – put simply, this case is so profound that it could impact the role the regulator takes in protecting all freshwater bodies from damage and pollution. This case alone deserves the backing of every angler, club and fishery who cares about our environment and once again is proof of how the unique partnership between Fish Legal and Angling Trust drives meaningful change. Expect to see a lot more of this case over the next 12 months and remember that as an individual member your contribution supports BOTH organisations – thank you.
in Business” Award – recognising the immense contribution anglers make to protecting the environment. That contribution includes the Water Quality Monitoring Network, a key part of our Anglers Against Pollution campaign, where angling clubs and syndicates are sampling their own waters. It led to water companies beginning to agree to target their infrastructure investment upon sites identified as being at particular risk and of great focus for anglers.
Our Anglers Against Litter campaign, supported by Shimano, was awarded the prestigious Keep Britain Tidy “Best
Threats to angling come in many forms and the level of policy engagement we undertake on behalf of recreational sea angling is quite staggering. There are over 40 separate Fisheries Management Plans under development, and we represent recreational angling on all of those that include recreationally important species, such as bass, skates and rays, and black bream, to name just a few. Alongside this we have built better networks than ever before with Defra, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), Cefas and the Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs) on marine-related policy work with our growing influence in this space. Our work spans local IFCA byelaws all the way up to national and international fisheries management where we advocate for sustainable fisheries management. That influence was in evidence when, earlier this year, Devon & Severn IFCA voted to maintain the existing ban on fixed and drift nets within Salcombe Estuary. The Angling Trust and local recreational angling organisations had gained the support of multiple marine mammal conservation groups and local environmental concerns in opposing a proposal to allow commercial fishing nets within the estuary for six months of the year. It would have been an environmental disaster for the estuary –an important bass nursery area and home to healthy populations of mullet, gilthead bream, flounder, plaice and salmonids.
We are ensuring recreational sea anglers have a voice in these critical matters and
Jamie Cook with a bass. Angling Trust’s policy engagement on behalf of sea anglers has increased immensely ion recent years.
others like Highly Protected Marine Areas and marine spatial management. Securing a permitted recreational bluefin tuna fishery is a significant step forward and whilst not perfect this is a major success for recreational sea angling and something we can continue to build upon across other matters with the support from the community.
When I joined the organisations in 2020 I was told that the Angling Trust did nothing for sea anglers. I can categorically say that in 2024 we are doing more than ever to represent sea anglers, charter skippers and coastal communities and I would like to thank those individuals who have joined in recognition of this work as without the Angling Trust, hundreds of thousands of sea anglers would simply have no voice on issues which are critical to our pastime, our fish stocks and our marine environment.
In December 2023 the International Union for Conservation listed wild Atlantic salmon as being near threatened across their range. In the UK they went further, and wild Atlantic salmon are now listed as being endangered. Through our work with the Missing Salmon Alliance, and through our own network of salmon anglers, we have continued to highlight the threats to Atlantic salmon and the urgent need for greater protection. This has included presenting our case to senior officials in Defra, being part of the Environment Agency’s working group looking at a renewed action plan for the protection of Atlantic salmon in England, supported partners such as Fisheries Management Scotland in their work with the Scottish government, continuing to push Natural Resources Wales on their action plan, and taken our work to the international level though our attendance at the annual North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO) meeting. In the year ahead we will continue to build on this work, via both the Missing Salmon Alliance, and by working with our partners in
the European Anglers Alliance. This will include being a leading voice in an international Atlantic salmon conference, Wild Salmon Connections, taking place in London in January 2025.
In freshwater we are actively addressing challenges of predation and invasive nonnative species. In 2023/24 our Fisheries Management Advisors responded to over 500 enquiries on issues relating to cormorants and goosanders, including multiple site visits to give detailed, specific advice. In Wales, our lobbying has led to a pilot project on the Usk which includes more proactive protection from the impact of fish-eating birds, including during the smolt run, and we will continue to campaign on this matter with your support.
In addition, our team have responded to over 350 enquiries on issues relating to otter predation including over 100 site visits to give further advice to assist in protecting our fisheries. Complementary to this, the Angling Improvement Fund team issued grants totalling £155,000 to protect fisheries from predation in partnership with the Environment Agency together with £66,000 to fisheries to improve biosecurity to protect fish stocks – all funded from rod licence sales.
We are seeing increasing conflicts with seals moving into the freshwater environment and staying inshore far longer than we have seen before. We are working with fishing clubs, Natural England, the Environment Agency, the RSPCA and others to address the present circumstances but to also bring in protocols that would allow fishing clubs to address these matters proactively to protect fish stocks.
Earlier this year I was invited to attend the opening of the Kennet Hatchery project designed to combat the devastating impacts of signal crayfish upon sustainable fish stocks on the river I grew up fishing as a child. This project has been driven by member club Reading and District Angling Association with
support from other clubs on the river and is yet another way in which the angling community are taking practical steps to protect fish, fishing and the environment.
From an illegal fishing perspective, we are not the regulator, but we support clubs and fisheries up and down the country to deter illegal angling and report matters into the Environment Agency and the police via our volunteer bailiff network. Over 17,000 patrols and nearly 45,000 volunteering hours were clocked up in the past year alone and this is set to expand further in years to come.
Promoting fishing for all
For others, it’s our work to promote angling that prompts you to join and support us. The amazing Reel Education programme, launched in partnership with Shakespeare to take angling back into schools alongside the national curriculum, continues to break new ground and create desire in new, younger demographics to try fishing for the first time. It’s part of our Get Fishing campaign, supported by the Environment
Agency and Sport England, and it is no coincidence that our partnerships with hundreds of community clubs and organisations across all three disciplines, to support delivery of over 1,600 engagement events in England which introduced 43,224 people to fishing in the past year, has coincided with a 24.8% increase in junior freshwater licence sales.
Our Get Fishing for Wellbeing initiative is promoting the benefits of angling to the wider community with 43 organisations now recognised as approved Get Fishing for Wellbeing delivery partners. Through our partnerships with the likes of the brilliant Reel Rod Squad we are offering angling opportunities to a wider cross section of society in both freshwater and saltwater as well as backing NHS social prescribing initiatives like Tackling Minds and many others across the country.
Through our phenomenal ambassador network we will continue to promote the benefits and opportunities associated with angling and I want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of our
Jamie Cook with barbel. Our Fisheries Enforcement Support Service is paid for by rod licence money in partnership with the Environment Agency and helps protect our waters from poachers and fish theft.
brilliant ambassadors, our coaches and our volunteers who help us promote angling opportunities for all and whose tireless work is starting to have an impact.
Developing our talented anglers
For many it’s the work we do to develop angling opportunities that is the driver behind your membership. Maybe that is through the hundreds of domestic competitions we run each year with members wishing to emulate the likes of Mike Bedding and Dave Shires in winning the biggest and highest profile domestic events in coarse angling. We have taken on delivery of the Penn Sea League and are extremely keen to speak to sea and game angling competition organisers. Contrary to some of the rumours, as a not-for-profit organisation we re-invest every penny we generate from domestic competitions and are focused on developing more opportunities for grass roots competition pathways across coarse, game and sea angling right the way across the country –what we need are local organisers to work alongside us to achieve this.
The Angling Trust’s support of our England national teams comes without a penny of funding for elite participation from either Sport England or UK Sport. The likes of Samantha Sim and Barnaby Newman alongside their teammates have shown what is possible in being crowned World Champions in their disciplines and our profound thanks go to the brands who sponsor and support our England teams across nearly 40 disciplines – that funding goes straight to the teams and allows them to compete without finance being a barrier but there are many teams who do not have sponsors.
At a grass roots level, through the Get Fishing Fund and in partnership with the Environment Agency we have distributed over £200,000 of rod licence income in grants to 113 clubs, fisheries, organisations and coaches to support their work to inspire a new generation of anglers. To achieve our aims, we need more trained angling coaches and in the last year we have allocated bursaries to train and license 351 new coaches. We thank them all for getting involved and I would encourage anyone reading this
Protecting marine environments has never been so important
Find out more about the work of the Angling Trust
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Join today and receive great benefits
who is interested to go to the Angling Trust website and see how they can support either as an individual or through their local club or fishery. Sea angling is always more of a challenge, but we have a dedicated membership category for any group who do not have their own fishing rights/waters but would still like to run local participation events and benefit from the support, advice, promotion, insurance and experience of the dedicated Angling Trust team.
With a network of over 2,600 community clubs, fisheries and syndicates across England and Wales, the Angling Trust is uniquely positioned to support what are the lifeblood of grass roots participation. Our Fisheries Support Service launches later this year and includes dedicated officers in each region to support clubs and fisheries to develop their offering, protect access and build sustainable futures with advice and guidance in everything from habitat work to safeguarding, from welfare to membership engagement and all of those core areas of advice and support that has made Angling Trust and Fish Legal membership essential to clubs and fisheries.
This is another way in which we are working with the Environment Agency to channel fishing licence income directly back into community clubs and I would urge anyone involved in running a club or fishery to check out this brilliant new resource which is tailored directly to the feedback of clubs up and down the country.
On the subject of clubs, fisheries and syndicates thank you to those who have contacted us this year to explore the idea of block-joining your individual members to be part of the Angling Trust and Fish Legal. Whilst this has some really practical benefits to the clubs, fisheries and individuals themselves in this day and age, it also ensures that those individuals walking your banks are both insured to be there and are contributing actively to protecting, promoting and
developing the future of angling in England and Wales. If you would like more information on this new option then please contact myself or the membership team and we can take you through the process and promote the benefits across your membership categories.
I am conscious that not many of you join Angling Trust and Fish Legal as individuals in order to save money –however as a member you have access to a host of exclusive benefits and discounts with money off tackle and bait from a growing range of retailers and 10% off at fisheries all over the country. On top of that there are offers on ferry travel, white goods, hotel stays, angling books and so much more. So please do use these member benefits and keep a look out for more being announced soon – we know times are tough and want to ensure you are getting full value for every penny you invest with us. The discount codes and offers can all be accessed by logging in to your dashboard on the Angling Trust website.
Finally, I am excited to share the news that renowned artist David Miller has kindly offered to provide artwork for Angling Trust and Fish Legal membership cards moving forward. Many of you will be familiar with David’s wonderful work and we know how much many enjoyed collecting these works in miniature on rod licences, so we are delighted that David’s images will portray the many species the Angling Trust and Fish Legal fight so hard to protect, promote and develop in the future.
I hope you enjoy reading about the work your membership has supported over the past year and feel proud to support an organisation for anglers, by anglers fighting for fish, fishing and the environment.
Best fishes Jamie Cook
A Passion for Nature
Chris Yates on why he is taking a break from fishing, his hope for the environment and how he nearly missed out on that record carp
It might seem odd for a man who helped inspire generations of anglers through countless books, radio shows and the famous TV series A Passion for Angling, but these days you’re unlikely to see
Chris Yates with a fishing rod in hand.
“I mean, I’ll always haunt places like this because so much of my life has been connected to these places,” says Chris, boiling up his ghillie kettle on an open fire on the banks of Wimborne & District Angling Society’s Pinnock Lakes.
“I still value them very highly and I love
to see the fish and although I’ve said that I probably won’t fish for a while, there’s every chance I’ll come back to it. Probably, I’m going to fall in love with a small river that may be strange to me, and I’ll have to get the rod out again. So, yes, I’m having a temporary withdrawal, a sabbatical, so I can concentrate on the thing that has really kind of inflamed me these last 10 years.”
He is sat with Jamie Cook, CEO of the Angling Trust, who is visibly intrigued by what could possibly keep this angling royalty away from his fishing.
Chris Yates at work on his drawings
“Everything in my life since I was a small child, five years old maybe even four, it was all about connection to the landscape,” Chris explains. “I didn’t feel really at home anywhere unless I could connect to the landscape and to do that you need an ally and my first ally, the one who introduced me to the heathland around my home, was a lizard. It was like a jewel, and it moved like quicksilver and disappeared into the heather, and I thought ‘what was that, so exotic and not even 100 yards from the house where I was brought up?’.
“And so, for years I was obsessed by lizards and that led to snakes, grass snake in particular, gorgeous things. And then I started to look deeper into my village pond, and I saw a carp and that was it. The carp led me to other species, but it was always water, water, water all the time until about 10 years ago. I’d always been interested in birds. I’d always wanted to know everything about what I could see. Otters even. It used to be a red-letter day when you saw an otter back in the 60s and 70s. With everything I saw I wanted to know a bit more about
it, what was their behaviour, what were they looking for, but birds in particular.”
He stirs a freshly brewed cup of PG Tips which he offers to Jamie, who is soaking up not just the breathtaking surroundings but every word that comes from Chris’s lips.
“Birds are so similar to fish, you know,” he tells Jamie. “They fly through the woods like fish fly through the stems of a lily bed. It’s the same action, but sometimes even more graceful. And then one day I saw this bird. I was walking not far from here, big open spread of grassland, and something flew by late in the evening. I had been watching shorteared owls, they’re slightly ghostlike, and this thing went by me, a dim silhouette. I thought ‘what the hell is that?’ and I had never knowingly seen a hen harrier, but I had now. It’s probably the most graceful flyer. An owl can skim over the grass, and they have a real kind of delicacy the way they alter and constantly readjust their wings. This harrier could outdo the owl. I just wanted to know more and now I’m totally obsessed.”
Chris Yates in conversation with Jamie Cook over a freshly brewed cup of tea
Above:
Below:
Among the Angling Trust’s many initiatives is our Love Fishing Love Nature campaign which highlights anglers’ love for the great outdoors and showcases the great work many clubs, fisheries and individuals are doing to protect the environment and the waters we fish. This work has never been so important as it is today, with climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss and water scarcity threatening the very environment and waters we love as anglers.
Of the thousands of anglers responding to the most recent National Angling Survey, almost 90% said that experiencing nature and scenery, and escaping crowds and noise was important to them. As anglers, we are also aware of the health and mental wellbeing benefits that being outdoors provides, and the many surprises and magical moments we encounter from being next to water.
“You’re surrounded by nature,” says Chris. “Even a new gravel pit, nature will take it over if you allow those things to happen and it just gets better. I always used to get so cross about working parties in springtime on beautiful lakes when all the birds were hatching and everything was in flower. Then suddenly they have a working party and it’s like a bloody desert!”
That anger very nearly led Chris to miss out on the chance to catch his then British record 51lb 8oz carp from Redmire pool back in 1980.
“I would have serious arguments, for instance when I fished Redmire,” he continues. “I would tell them we can’t do this, and they would get quite cross.
I even got thrown out of the syndicate because I refused to go to a working party.
“I did get back in again, actually it was the year I caught my monster fish. They had thrown me out that year because I refused to play their game and even though some of them definitely sympathised, they didn’t want to get into trouble with the hierarchy. But I’m afraid I did, and I got into trouble. I had to write a very polite letter and explain, and I thought this probably won’t work but it did. I knew that it had to work because I was going to catch this monster fish. I’d already told Rod Hutchinson I was going to catch this monster on the first day of that season, so by hook or by crook I did get back in.”
While carp have been Chris’s lifelong passion, Jamie wonders if there have been different species that have overtaken carp for periods in his life.
“Definitely,” responds Chris, without hesitation. “Right at the beginning, my carp pond had a good population of wild carp, lovely wild carp that probably went up to six maybe seven pounds. I never got anything anywhere near as big as that, but it froze up during the 62-63 Ice
Chris has become fascinated by the hen harrier and its amazing flight
Chris with his then record carp he captured from Redmire
Age, the great freeze. And when the ice melted, the carp just floated to the side. It just destroyed everything.
“I had a bicycle, but I couldn’t get to anywhere else that had carp. So, I had to start looking around and I went down to the River Mole, which is my nearest river, and for about five years I became hooked on chub. They were my saviour. They were almost the same basic shape as a wild carp, but I could use slugs and worms and things which I had never really used before. I always used bread flake for the carp, or floating crust. So, I was reassured by the chub, they kept me sane.”
Eventually, Chris did find a carp pond or two and later bought himself a motorbike – and a map book.
“I started to go around the country looking at these little blue dots on the Ordnance Survey maps. It was fascinating, and again a magical time, because that little blue dot revealed something new. It was almost like you’re looking for a carp swim and, oh my god, look at that valley, look at that stream, look at that wood and so a picture began to form as I looked at the map.
“I would get on my bike, and it would be maybe 20 miles away down a maze of lanes and I’d be sniffing for the water, and I’d follow the stream and sometimes I would go the wrong way, maybe an outfall I was following, but then I go back up again and you come to this little dam and it was maybe a pool of two acres, completely overgrown with lily pads. Then you see a lily pad twitching, and it’s like I’m in heaven. I found a lot of ponds like that and so my world was restored and I went back to carp fishing for the next 50 years.”
Like Chris, protecting the environment is of great importance to the Angling Trust and Fish Legal and our campaigns have given a voice to anglers who share our passion to conserve and improve the health of our waters. Are there things that give Chris hope, or maybe concerns, for our future, Jamie asks.
“I have concerns that I think most people share that the world is changing and if we don’t change with it, if we don’t change to begin to at least grapple with the subject properly, seriously, we’re all going to be in trouble. So that concerns me. But there’s something that lifts
me and that is a lot of young people, particularly my children’s age sort of in their 30s, and I meet a lot of their friends 20s and 30s, they all have this positive attitude about nature in particular. They know that’s where they can find their peace because there’s a lot going on around and you need to be able to unwind.
“This is why fishing was always so good because you learn to wait and while you wait you learn all sorts of things that you would never have learned unless you waited. This is what the youngsters, I think, are good at. They’re very good at sort of understanding what nature means and this is why I get very cross about people who complain about the wokeness of the world. I tell them ‘better to be a woke than asleep at the wheel’. Youngsters are hope for the future and they have enough sense to be able
to see how there might be ways out of this, a kind of sense that they know the seriousness of the various situations like the pollution of the rivers, the pollution of the sea, the heat of the sea, but they know there are ways of addressing this and coming to a better future. If we didn’t have that we might as well just all go to bed and tip ourselves, in our beds, off Beachy Head.
“It gives me hope that there are enough young people and they’re being joined all the time by new brigades. That’s why I think the Angling Trust is so good because they get enthusiastic anglers on board, and they begin to get a bigger picture of the environment and want to carry on the fight for cleaner rivers.”
Time for a cuppa ... brewing with his ghillie kettle
Frontline warriors in angling’s battle against pollution
Nearly 800 volunteers join Water Quality Monitoring Network to fight for cleaner rivers
The Anglers Against Pollution campaign, a powerful initiative of the Angling Trust and supported by Orvis, has emerged as a rallying cry for the UK’s angling community in 2024.
The campaign has gained traction nationwide, driven by the collective frustration and passion of anglers who have witnessed first-hand the destructive impact of pollution on rivers, lakes, and coastal waters.
The initiative was born out of the recognition that anglers are not just stakeholders, but also frontline witnesses to the water pollution crisis. Anglers are uniquely positioned to shine a light on the problem, demand action, and contribute to the solutions.
Launched with the goal of helping angling clubs safeguard their waters, the campaign has since evolved into a force for widespread public awareness, and political policy reform.
Just a few of the hundreds of volunteers who are testing water quality on UK rivers
Our Anglers Against Pollution campaign is supported by Orvis
Our Water Quality Monitoring Network initiative was launched and managed by our colleague Kris Kent, who very sadly passed away earlier this year. Kris was passionate about rivers and committed to protecting them from pollution. His huge contribution to conservation work over many years will be his lasting legacy. Kris will be missed by all who knew him.
The power of citizen science
At the start of 2024, we released the findings from our Water Quality Monitoring Network’s (WQMN) first annual report. The network continues to grow and now has nearly 800 regular participants testing the water for 278 clubs across 213 rivers.
The report findings spurred a wave of media coverage from national newspapers and more in-depth articles in regional press focusing on specific local river issues. Publicity itself is not the end goal, but it is an extremely useful tool in the armoury of the campaign. Where we saw spikes in media coverage, for example in Kent about the river Medway, in Lancashire and Yorkshire about the rivers Ribble and Swale, local WQMN volunteers were also able to engage more effectively with water companies, other supporting campaign groups and even local politicians.
Anglers hold polluters to account
Whether it be water company, agricultural or industrial pollution, we focus on actions and resolutions with companies and individuals responsible for large-scale environmental damage. One notable example occurred in March when the Angling Trust helped the Hampshire River Keepers Association and a coalition of local and environment groups to organise a significant protest at the Fullerton Wastewater Treatment Works. This sewage works, operated by Southern Water, had been responsible for many years of untreated sewage leaks into the river Test with visible damage to the river, and the undeniable evidence of the WQMN yellow box of citizen science tests. As we have seen before, years of pollution reports by the riparian owner had been largely ignored and downplayed by the water company and the Environment Agency. Praise is
also highly due to the concerted efforts of the River Keepers to raise the issue during the winter when we saw months of ongoing sewage leaks.
The protest was very well attended, importantly not only by the angling community but also by local residents and members of the local council. The support of these groups, now organised in a coalition by the Test & Itchen Association, was key in building a loud voice which the polluters could not ignore. Behind the scenes the Angling Trust and Fish Legal sent letters to the Environment Agency, DEFRA and Natural England and arranged discussions with politicians and the water company. To cut a very long story a little shorter, the outcome was that Southern Water, almost immediately, issued an instruction from the very top level of the company to increase the wastewater treatment rate by 60% and operate to full capacity, rather than sticking to the letter of the site permit.
It’s the water stupid
The Anglers Against Pollution campaign’s message was always very clear: pollution is destroying Britain’s aquatic ecosystems and immediate action is required. The organisations who should enforce that action, the politicians and regulators – OFWAT and the Environment Agency - were failing to protect Britain’s waterways from the onslaught of sewage, agriculture and industrial pollution.
With the support of high-profile ambassadors generating widespread media coverage, the issue of water pollution finally started receiving the attention it deserved. Behind the scenes, the campaign also prioritised policy advocacy, calling on the government and regulatory bodies to strengthen protections for the UK’s waters.
Anglers Against Pollution worked closely with Members of Parliament, meeting and briefing politicians on the Water Quality Monitoring Network findings. In March 2024, the campaign saw a major victory when a series of amendments to the Environment Act were introduced, targeting tougher penalties for polluters and increased funding for water monitoring programmes. This legislative victory was a testament to the power of grassroots activism. Thousands of anglers signed petitions, attended public hearings, and contacted their MPs to demand stronger protections for their beloved waterways. The Angling Trust played a key role in coordinating these efforts, providing resources and support for anglers to engage in the political process.
Above: Martin Salter and the Hampshire River Keepers Association at the Fullerton protest.
Left:
Angling Trust ambassador Jim Murray, Martin Salter, the Kennet River Keepers and supporters at the Newbury protest
Scan for more info on Anglers Against Pollution and our online shop
In the run up to the General Election, we published our own manifesto, hosted and attended hustings along with fellow campaigning groups. Just days before the election we hosted the, then, Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment Steve Reed on the riverbank. We discussed the work of the network, presented him with the Trust’s manifesto and secured his support for angling and commitment to working with anglers if Labour were elected to government.
The fight goes on
With the election of a new government, a new Water (Special Measures) Bill was introduced which is the wrapper for Labour’s package of measures to tighten the regulatory screw on water industry performance. We welcome the measures, such as ringfencing investment for water infrastructure upgrades so it can’t be used for bonuses and dividends, and stronger customer panels with the power to summon water company board members to explain themselves.
However, these are just the first steps and
How you can get involved
The success of Anglers Against Pollution depends on the involvement of anglers of all disciplines from across the country. Whether you’re an experienced angler or just starting out, there are many ways to contribute to the campaign.
1 You can join a local clean-up event, document pollution in your local waters, or lend your voice to advocacy efforts by contacting your MP. The Angling Trust also encourages anglers to subscribe for the Anglers Against Pollution newsletter, which provides regular updates on the campaign’s progress, upcoming events, and opportunities to get involved.
much more needs to be done. We want to see joined-up and locally prioritised approach to managing water pressures from flood to drought and pollution at a catchment and regional level.
The Anglers Against Pollution campaign shows no signs of slowing down, unfortunately there is still much work to do. We are looking at expanding the testing programme to still waters, and potentially to estuaries. The campaign has helped galvanise the angling community and attracted attention from environmentalists, policymakers, and the public alike.
Looking ahead, the Angling Trust has outlined several key priorities for the remainder of the year and beyond. These include continuing to push government for strong implementation of regulations and representing anglers on the upcoming government review of the water industry. Anglers will remain at the heart of the movement, and the Trust will amplify your voices and actions to protect the waters you care about.
2 If your club hasn’t already signed up for the Water Quality Monitoring Network initiative, encourage them to do so and add to the growing citizen science data which gives us the evidence to challenge polluters.
3 Buy a Supporter Pack and show you care about our waters. Our Supporter Pack includes an Enamel Supporters Badge, Waterproof Tackle Box Sticker and Car Sticker for just £4.99 with all profits directly going to support the Anglers Against Pollution campaign. These packs are being sold by tackle shops at no profit to themselves and are also online through the Angling Trust website
4 Wear campaign clothing. Our clothing site features merchandise supporting two of our key campaigns: Anglers
Against Pollution and Love Fishing Love Nature. There are t-shirts, hoodies, caps and beanies with new stock being added regularly. With both adult and children’s clothing in sizes from small to 3XL (up to 5XL for some items) there are options to suit you or any other proud anglers in your life. All profits from the sale of our merchandise helps to support our campaign work. Shop online at https:// shops.fabryx.co.uk/collections/ angling-trust
The state of our waterways is a national scandal.
In England, 86% of rivers are officially degraded. That’s according to the Environment Agency’s own assessments, not ours.
In 2023, with the Pickering Fishery Association, Fish Legal took the last Government to court over its failure to restore the Costa Beck. But what started as a local fight to restore one spring-fed beck in North Yorkshire became a test case for restoring rivers and lakes across the country.
We said the last Government’s River Basin Management Plans were defective. We said they had misunderstood and misapplied the law. And we said they needed to commit to specific actions to restore every river and lake nationwide - not just some - and quickly to meet legally binding targets by 2027.
The High Court agreed. The last Government got it wrong.
But instead of accepting that, before the general election, the Government and the Environment Agency lodged an appeal to the Court’s judgment...
The Appeal
This new Government had a chance to get it right. They came into power promising to take “action to accelerate progress on improving the water environment” and to make “cleaning up the water environment a priority for Defra”
They could have accepted the High Court’s ruling and dropped the appeal. They could have directed the Environment Agency to get on with its job of regulating industries that are polluting rivers
A NATIONALLY IMPORTANT COURT CASE THAT AFFECTS YOUR LOCAL RIVER
up and down the country. Instead, they have chosen to defend and continue the previous Government’s failure.
“So, we’re heading to the Court of Appeal to force this Government to ACT NOW to deliver for our rivers. The date: 14 and 15 January 2025
What’s happening in the rest of the UK?
The devolved Governments are watching this case carefully because the authorities in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland should also have River Basin Management Plans that set out how they will meet legally binding targets for water by 2027.
This is the leading case that will determine whether action is now taken to restore rivers and lakes across the UK.
We need your help
If, like us, you want to see all rivers thriving with life; if you’ve had enough of empty words and spin over substance; of excuses for inaction and endless bureaucratic drift – back us in our legal fight in the Court of Appeal.
14% of rivers in good condition is not good enough. We don’t think any river should be left behind, because #EveryRiverCounts
We need your help to raise funds to defend the appeal.
”
“ We never thought that our angling club would be at the centre of a nationally important legal case. But it is now obvious that the Environment Agency’s reluctance to tackle chronic pollution from a water company and other business on the Costa Beck is the same across the country.”
Martin Smith, Secretary Pickering Fishery Association
“ This case goes to the heart of why Government has failed to make progress towards improving the health of rivers and lakes in England. The Environment Agency and the Government have taken a deliberately high-level, generic – and effectively non-committal – approach to achieving the restoration targets when what was needed was a determined, waterbody-by-waterbody plan of real action to stop the damage.”
Andrew Kelton, Fish Legal Solicitor
“ What we need are River Basin Management Plans backed by meaningful action. Anything short of that will be a tacit admission that the Government has abandoned its environmental ambitions for water.”
Penelope Gane, Head of Practice at Fish Legal
River rescue
Wales review targets organic waste and anaerobic digesters after Fish Legal calls for change
When it comes to the Wye and its water quality problems, Fish Legal has focused on Wales and, in particular, on weak regulatory oversight of land spreading. It was one club – the Ross on Wye Angling Club – who first contacted us for help after the river turned green in 2020. With algal blooms starting as far up the river as Llanbister, we began looking at what was going on in Powys.
The Wye is a highly protected river. Because of that, all of us would expect the authorities – that’s planners in local councils and Natural Resources Wales –to have a proper handle on what is being spread within its catchment. After all, it is their legal duty to protect the wildlife in the river that makes it special.
What we found instead were gaps in planning and regulation that left the river exposed to pollution, especially when it comes to digestate.
What is digestate?
Digestate is the liquid end-product of an industrial process called anaerobic digestion.
Hailed by many as the answer to processing the tonnes of chicken manure produced in the Wye catchment, this industry has a dreadful track record when it comes to pollution.
Farmers’ Weekly describe digestate as “rocket fuel.” It is extremely rich in the nutrients linked to algal blooms. There is
already widespread evidence that digestate is causing pollution on the Wye and other rivers.
Action through the courts
With the Ross on Wye Angling Club, Fish Legal notified Natural Resources Wales that the Wye was degraded under the Environmental Damage Prevention and Remediation Regulations. This is a formal legal process that is available to angling clubs affected by severe pollution. In response, where Natural Resources Wales find evidence of environmental damage, they must take action against those responsible for the damage, making them pay to put things right.
We also took Powys County Council to court over digestate spreading and referred Natural Resources Wales to the environmental watchdog in Wales for failing to monitor, investigate and regulate effectively to protect the Wye. But we needed Welsh Government to recognise the problems with current practices that are going on right under the noses of planners and regulators in Wales, leaving the Wye and other rivers at risk of ongoing pollution.
With Afonydd Cymru (the umbrella organisation for Welsh rivers trusts) we chipped away at the Welsh Government for
The Wye: a special river that needs our protection
over a year to accept that the existing controls aren’t good enough. And finally, in July 2024, the Welsh Government announced that it would carry out a full review of the regulation and enforcement of spreading of ALL organic materials on land in Wales, including digestate.
The review marked a significant step forward in the fight to protect rivers across Wales, and particularly those currently exposed to digestate pollution such as the Wye and the Afon Teifi.
In December 2016, a catastrophic failure at an anaerobic digester plant near Tregaron resulted in 44,000 gallons of pollutant leaking into the Teifi, killing an estimated 18,000 fish. Yet nearly eight years after the pollution incident the plant
continues to operate without planning permission with the full knowledge of Natural Resources Wales and the local planning authority.
Recently, it was also confirmed that the anaerobic digester plant in Talgarth, near Brecon, which would receive thousands of tonnes of manure and dirty water from the expansion of intensive poultry farming near Builth Wells, did not have planning permission for all of its structures. But it continues to operate despite the obvious pollution risks to the Wye Special Area of Conservation.
The review by the Welsh Government needs to resolve the collective shortcomings by authorities in Wales. We must close the loopholes to protect rivers.
Why the review is good news for fish and rivers in Wales
Spreading of organic material such as manure on land is a significant contributor to excessive nutrients in Welsh rivers.
• Gaps in the planning system and weak regulation are allowing spreading to continue to pollute rivers.
• Large industrial anaerobic digesters are operating in Wales without full planning permission.
• Planning authorities and Natural Resources Wales do not have a handle of where spreading takes place and what effects it is having on rivers. Welsh Government have recognised that this needs to change.
• This review will look at everything that is spread legally, including slurry, manures, digestate, sewage
sludge, sludge from milk and food processing plants.
• Digestate can contribute to excessive nutrients in rivers when it is spread on land that is already high in nutrients or in conditions that cause diffuse pollution of nearby waters. Digestate is also high in ammonia, a chemical that is potentially lethal to fish.
• The review is also being conducted across Welsh Government departments, linking ambitions for climate, biodiversity and nature restoration.
• Fish and other aquatic wildlife need healthy rivers to survive. Currently, pollution is continuing unchecked. The review should lead to the planning and regulatory system protecting rivers from land spreading.
A lasting legacy
Fish Legal recently received a gift left by long-time member Peter Rudd who sadly passed away in June. Peter’s daughter, Elizabeth, shared with us how he loved to fish the River Ribble and Piethorne Reservoir. Peter also travelled annually to Ireland and often fished Lough Corrib. He was a keen fly fisherman and loved to tie his own flies. The following poem was read at his funeral service:
Fisherman’s Prayer
God grant that I may live to fish
Until my dying day, And when it comes to my last cast, I’ll then most humbly pray: When in the Lord’s safe landing net, I’m peacefully asleep
That in His mercy I’ll be judged as good enough to keep.
Author Unknown
Peter William Alexander Rudd. 01/09/1937 to 18/06/2024
Fish Legal’s vital work in holding polluters to account continues because of kind and generous donations from supporters like Peter. If you would like to find out more about leaving a gift in your will to Fish Legal, please contact us at for admin@fishlegal.net
From little acorns a club is born
A simple act of kindness by Voluntary Bailiff Roy Bridson has gone a long way in the Cambridgeshire town of Whittlesey
Roy Bridson is so lucky to have the wonderful Briggate River drain run close to the back of his house. The small, picturesque fenland waterway, known locally as “The Bower”, winds its way through the town before transforming into the King’s Dyke and eventually heading off to the North Sea.
Not that Whittlesey is perfect. Like many towns of similar size, it has its fair share of anti-social behaviour, vandalism, litter – and even illegal fishing. Roy should
know, he regularly walks the banks of The Bower as part of his VBS role and has earned the respect of many local residents for the tireless work he carries out to ensure the river is looked after.
It was in 2021 when Roy, pottering about in his back garden, heard the sound of a youngster crying somewhere alongside the river. Worried that someone was in trouble, Roy went to investigate and came upon a young lad who was inconsolable having just broken his only fishing rod.
As is his nature, Roy gave one of his spare fishing rods to the boy so he could carry on fishing and be able to fish in the future. Little did Roy know at the time that this simple act of kindness would grow and grow.
The gesture was overseen by a bystander who was unfortunately very gravely ill but was so taken with Roy’s kindness decided
Above: Whittlesey Small Fry Youth Fishing Club has received grants from the National Lottery and the Environment Agency
Left: A coaching session for kids on The Bower
Top Right: Children receiving fishing tackle from Roy
Bottom Right: Just a few of the youngsters with their fishing tackle
Find out more about Reel Education
to bequeath all of his fishing tackle to him to donate to a cause upon his passing.
Roy selected another junior angler who was worthy of receiving the man’s fishing tackle and the tale was shared on a local Facebook page. It went viral and led to more donations from local residents of complete fishing kits and odd pieces of fishing tackle which Roy donated to other local children, all keen to start fishing.
The positivity that these donations created led to an invitation from Fenland Youth Radio to deliver a small coaching taster sessions for local children during a Whittlesey family event called the Big Bash. It was aimed at helping local people come out of the Covid crisis through a large community event held on the Manor Grounds alongside The Bower.
Roy is assisted in his VBS role by local fishing coach and fellow VBS member John Pope, who also runs a coaching venture called Everybody Can Fish. John was the obvious candidate to ask to manage the coaching session and so it was that the first small coaching session took place during the inaugural Whittlesey Big Bash.
This event was such a success that the Big Bash is now an annual event in the town with over 200 children having a go at fishing in one day. As a result of the huge enjoyment of local children who caught their very first fish in the session, Roy and John were asked to consider setting up and running a small fishing club for local juniors to be properly taught how to fish and respect nature.
Education programme which encourages primary school children to appreciate the environment, nature and fishing through curriculum-based activities and fun PE games.
Due to the success of the club, the Friends of the Manor and Whittlesey Sports Association have received grants from the National Lottery and the Environment Agency and local community support that has been used to place 14 fishing platforms along The Bower to enable youngsters from the club and those less able to fish safely. At the official opening, Cambridgeshire’s Deputy Lieutenant Mr Rizwan Rahemtulla represented King Charles and was accompanied by the Mayor of Whittlesey, Councillor Alex Miscandlon.
Roy said: “I never imagined the club would be so successful. It’s wonderful to see the smile on the kids’ faces when they catch their first fish, the skills they have learned through the coaching sessions, and the care they show for the environment and wildlife.”
Very soon afterwards, the Whittlesey Small Fry Youth Fishing Club was formed and has now gained bait sponsorship from Fishing Republic and the use of Float Fish Farm at nearby Farcet during the close fishing season. The club runs alongside the Angling Trust’s Reel
To date, more than 40 sets of fishing tackle have been donated to local children who Roy regularly sees fishing The Bower. And although there are no stats to prove it, Roy believes anti-social behaviour in Whittlesey is on the decline.
The Voluntary Bailiff Service is part of the Angling Trust’s Fisheries Enforcement Support Service which is run in partnership with the Environment Agency and funded through fishing licence income.
Investing in the next generation of anglers
Get Fishing campaign introduces fishing to over 43,000 people in the past year
Reel Education engages with 16,000 children in 70 schools - and continues to grow
Giving people the opportunity to try fishing for the first time is a major part of the Angling Trust’s work. Our Get Fishing campaign to “get more people fishing more often” has had another successful year, introducing over 43,000 people from all demographics to fishing in 2023-24.
Our partnerships with hundreds of community clubs and organisations across coarse, game and sea fishing supported delivery of over 1,600 engagement events in England and coincided with a 24.8% increase in junior rod licence sales.
The Get Fishing campaign is funded through our contracts with the Environment Agency and Sport England, and generous sponsorship from our trade partners Angling Direct and Shakespeare. In addition, the Environment Agency reinvested fishing licence income into the Get Fishing Fund to provide bursaries to train angling coaches and fund projects to help get people fishing.
Meanwhile, our Reel Education initiative to provide angling-related lessons to primary school children in
The joy of catching your first fish can live long in the memory. Our Get Fishing and Reel Education campaigns introduce thousands of young people to fishing every year.
maths, art and science, continues to grow. The Reel Education team engage pupils about the importance of our lakes, rivers and seas, and introduce children to the health and wellbeing benefits of fishing.
Funded by our exclusive fishing tackle partner Shakespeare, Reel Education engaged with nearly 16,000 children in over 70 schools across England in the past year. In 2024-25, the Reel Education campaign will also receive funding from the Environment Agency who are reinvesting rod licence money to help provide opportunities for young people to try fishing.
Over coming years, the plan is to roll out the Reel Education project to over 400 schools and introduce an estimated 56,000 primary school children to the joys of fishing.
Clive Copeland, Head of Participation, said:
“Through funding from the Environment Agency and Sport England and the generous support of Angling Direct and Shakespeare, the Get Fishing campaign
and Reel Education is investing in the next generation of anglers and developing opportunities and pathways for people who would never have considered fishing to get involved.
“A massive amount of work goes on behind the scenes every week for the benefit of all within the angling industry. We truly appreciate the support we receive from the angling community for our participation initiatives, and I want to thank everyone involved in helping promote angling to new audiences and to get more people into fishing.”
Thank you to our partners
Eyes and ears on the riverbank
Volunteer army carry out 17,000 patrols in crackdown on fish theft and poaching
It’s an early morning start for Carole Sanderson. Down on her local river the mist is rising and although she’s not seen a fox or deer today, she gets the sense she’s being watched.
Carole’s eyes, though, are fixed on the water, looking for a sign a fish is feeding or lurking in the shallows.
“It’s totally deep rooted,” admits Carole. “I’ve fished for over 60 years. I fished for the England Ladies Fly Fishing team which I really enjoyed, and I’ve met some lovely people along the way. Now I give back.”
As an active volunteer in a number of spheres, ‘giving back’ includes her role as a voluntary bailiff and Area Coordinator for Tyne Valley and Northumberland.
The Voluntary Bailiff Service is a key part of the Angling Trust’s Fisheries
Enforcement Support Service, which is funded through rod licence income in partnership with the Environment Agency.
Poaching, fish theft and illegal fishing are serious issues for clubs and fisheries, and while only the police and the Environment Agency have the powers to take action against culprits, our Fisheries Enforcement team provide invaluable support through intelligence gathering and joint patrols.
“The role of a voluntary bailiff is to visit your local waters and look for signs of any
Tyne Valley Area Coordinator
Carole Sanderson
illegal fishing, anyone putting nets out, or any other suspicious activity,” explains Carole. “Then, via a secure website, we report what we’ve seen, and it’s passed on to either the police or the Environment Agency.
“Being a voluntary bailiff isn’t demanding at all. You put in as much time as you want and it’s nice getting out along the river, talking to people and just taking note. If you’re going out for a walk with a dog you can be a voluntary bailiff.”
Kevin Woodcock is Regional Enforcement Support Manager for the North East and says the problems that most clubs and fisheries face are theft of fish and theft of fishing rights.
“The easiest way to describe theft of fish is that because the water is on land that’s owned by somebody, the water is also owned and therefore the contents are owned,” explains Kevin. “If a poacher or illegal angler fishes those waters and takes fish away with them, that’s theft of fish.
“Theft of fishing rights is a little more complex. If clubs or fisheries have bought, leased or rented the land, they have paid the rights to fishing. If unlicensed anglers or non-members fish those waters, they are taking away the rights of what legitimate anglers and club members have paid for.
“Both theft of fish and theft of fishing rights can be dealt with by local police officers.”
Kevin adds: “The only agencies that can approach an angler and ask to see their rod licence is a warranted Environment Agency officer or a police constable, unless you’re a voluntary bailiff on your own club waters and it’s in your club rules that any member of the committee
or club bailiff has the right to see the day ticket or membership card and the rod licence.
“One of my roles is to visit clubs and fisheries and offer advice and guidance on things like signage and putting them in relevant places such as car parks, gates and entrances. We also offer training for club bailiffs to upscale them on current trends and legislation and will put them in touch with the Angling Trust’s Building Bridges team if they have an issue with migrant anglers who perhaps don’t understand the rules or have an issue with the language barrier.”
Helping people from abroad continue their passion for fishing in the UK legally is an important element of the Building Bridges team’s work.
“We’re trying to be that helping hand and explain in a very simple way what the
rules are for fishing in the UK,” says Janusz Kansik, Building Bridges Project Manager who came to Britain from Poland 14 years ago.
“We do it by producing two types of multilingual signage. The first explains the law regarding the coarse fishing close season, while the second explains the requirement to have a rod licence, and a day ticket or membership. There’s also some graphics on the sign saying that you shouldn’t remove any fish from the water you are fishing.
“We also offer a free translation service for angling clubs and fisheries. All that
Above Left: Voluntary Bailiffs, Building Bridges, Environment Agency officers and police at the launch of Operation Clampdown
Above:
Kevin Woodcock with one of the Angling Trust’s Operation Traverse signs
Right:
Janusz Kansik (right) delivering Building Bridges signs to a fishery
the club need to do is send us an email with a copy of the rules and within two weeks we’ll be able to translate those rules into other languages.
“Finally, we also organise, produce and deliver multilingual leaflets to clubs and fisheries so anglers from other countries have basic information about fishing rules in England which are in Polish, Romanian, Lithuanian, Chinese and Latvian. Because we are funded by rod licence income, all of this help we offer to clubs and fisheries is free of charge.”
That support in 2023-24 extended to 78 angling clubs with the Building Bridges team supplying over 400 signs and 5,800 leaflets. During the same period, voluntary bailiffs carried out over 17,000 patrols, 44,000 hours of voluntary work and submitted over 1,000 incident reports to the Environment Agency and police.
Currently, there are 580 Voluntary Bailiffs operating across England but there are plans to extend that number to 1,400 over coming years.
Prince Albert Angling Society is just one of many clubs that have benefitted from the services of the Building Bridges
North West
team and the Voluntary Bailiff Service. When they took on a reservoir in Greater Manchester with a history of poaching and set lines, the Angling Trust provided multilingual signs and local voluntary bailiffs carried out regular patrols.
“Similarly, the River Dee near Chester has always had a poaching issue, and the Angling Trust run joint patrols with the Environment Agency, the police and local crime units,” says Andy Strickland, General Secretary of Prince Albert AS.
“It’s important we liaise with the Angling Trust with all these issues because they’re able to provide us with up-to-date best practice, with up-to-date intelligence, and with practical advice because they’re knowledgeable guys. It saves the club a huge amount of administration in having to search for the right answers with various other organisations and it’s just a very practical, worthwhile and simple way forward.”
The Voluntary Bailiff Service, Building Bridges and the Fisheries Enforcement Support Service are all funded by rod licence income in partnership with the Environment Agency.
Get in touch
Buy a rod fishing licence
To report illegal fishing, call the Environment Agency Incident hotline on 0800 807060. For further guidance on matters relating to poaching and fisheries crime, contact the appropriate Fisheries Enforcement Support Manager from the list below:
East of England
Adam Wall 07495 433618 adam.wall@anglingtrust.net
Yorkshire & North East
Kevin Woodcock 07947 893664 kevin.woodcock@anglingtrust.net
Midlands
Kevin Pearson 07495 433620 kevin.pearson@anglingtrust.net
Paul Thomas 07495 433621
paul.thomas@anglingtrust.net
South East Currently vacant
South West
David Wilkins 074954 33623
david.wilkins@anglingtrust.net
For our Building Bridges team, who can assist in positive engagement with migrant anglers, contact:
Janusz Kansik 07495 433615 janusz.kansik@anglingtrust.net
Look Up It ’s Live! Power lines on wooden poles carry voltages up to 132,000 volts. Stay away from the electricity network and change your route to avoid power lines. Unpack, set up and pack your rod away at the water ’s edge. Observe all
instruct you not to fish in the area. Always report any near-misses with the electricity network. Call 105 to let Northern Powergrid know and report to the fishery owner – you could save a life. Dial 999 in an emergency. northernpowergrid.com/safety
Litter heroes in big clean-up
Campaign inspiring anglers and clubs to help protect our waters and countryside
There’s nothing more demoralising than turning up at your favourite fishing spot only to find it plagued by litter.
Whether its empty cans under a hedgerow, sweet wrappers caught in a tree, or plastic bottles washed up on the shoreline, it’s a stark reminder of how human negligence is impacting the environment.
But the tide on litter is turning.
Armed with gloves, pickers and an unwavering determination, anglers are heading out to their local waters to clean up litter and restore the landscapes. Through the Anglers Against Litter campaign, the Angling Trust has provided 150 angling clubs with equipment to carry out litter picks throughout the year involving at least 1,370 volunteers.
We have been inspired by the stories and photos sent to us via our hashtag #anglersagainstlitter, and we have been amazed by some of the weird and unusual items that have been found along the way! Amongst the usual suspects of shopping trolleys and plastic bottles there has also been an avocado toilet seat, a selection of Elton John cassettes and a flat screen TV.
A shining example of someone going above and beyond was six-year-old Braydon Atherton-Gartland from Wigan who attended one of our litter events. His efforts showcase the positive role young anglers can play in helping to conserve the environment.
To say thank you for his support, we attended a special assembly at his school, Marsh Green Primary, to celebrate his contribution and provide him with a certificate for his achievement. He also
Our Anglers Against Litter campaign is sponsored by Shimano and supported by The Insurance Emporium
received a fishing rod and reel, generously donated by the Environment Agency from confiscated gear.
Ian Doyle, one of our Fisheries Support Officers, remarked: ‘It’s heartwarming to see young anglers like Brandon actively involved in preserving our natural habitats.”
The Anglers Against Litter campaign is very proud and fortunate to have the support of two trade partners.
Shimano have been a lead sponsor for the campaign since early 2022. Through their support, we have managed to take the campaign to the next level, supporting more clubs around the country to crackdown on litter. Recognising the success of this partnership, the Angling Trust and Shimano were honoured to receive the ‘Best in Business’ 2023 award from Keep Britain Tidy in recognition of the campaign. This showcases
the collective efforts and national contributions that is being taken by anglers to tackle litter, of which we hope to continue to build into the year ahead.
We are also pleased that The Insurance Emporium, a leading provider of specialist insurance services, joined in 2024 as a supporting sponsor of the campaign. Through this partnership, we have been able to further strengthen our support for clubs to take action to remove litter and position anglers as environmental stewards from source to sea.
Litter picking events can help bring angling club members together, to share stories and do something positive to protect fishing and the environment.
To say thank-you for these efforts, we have worked with Shimano to design exclusive ‘Anglers Against Litter’ caps that can be given out to volunteers who go the extra mile.
One such recipient was Ron Wood, who received the first Shimano cap last year. As Ron says: “Anglers are the custodians of the rivers and streams and if we don’t look after them, who else will?”
The Angling Trust and Shimano also hosted an awards day at Partridge Lakes in Cheshire to say thankyou to some anglers for their outstanding support to the campaign. The winners enjoyed an exclusive day fishing with Shimano ambassadors Nick Speed and Shaun Cameron.
Looking forward to 2025, we hope to continue to support more clubs around the country and encourage more people to respect the environment and clean up their litter.
Like mother, like daughter
In her own words … Marina Gibson on childhood memories, catching her first salmon and why there’s no place like home
My earliest fishing memory was probably at my local trout pond when I was around five or six years old. My brother and I used to go with my mom, and we were sort of fighting and trying to catch more fish than the other. I remember the guy who was running the trout farm at the time took us aside and killed a fish in front of us and gutted it and then showed us the pumping heart. As kids we were like ‘whoaaa!’. I think those crazy
memories stick with you.
One of my favourite memories was when I was eight years old. It was the first day I had been taught how to fish with a double-handed rod and when the grown-ups were having lunch in the hut. I was getting very fidgety and bored. So, I grabbed a rod from the rod rack and marched down to the river next to the hut and started casting. I wouldn’t have been able to cast well, I was just
sort of chucking it out and it was landing in spaghetti. I just remember hooking into my first ever sea trout. The instinct when you catch a fish is to just grab the line and hold it. It was quite a strong fish considering I was pretty small back then. I clamped down, by which time my brother and my godfather were there trying to help me. The fish just pinged off and although I lost my first ever migratory fish, I think that probably spurred me on even more.
Then a few years later, when I was 11, I caught my first Atlantic salmon and that will never leave my memories. Up until then it was just a thing that I had been watching my parents do, catch fish. I had tried a few times with no luck and still being quite small and unable to cast properly, but just that feeling of catching something that’s much stronger than you and not really knowing what to do, that’s special.
Having all those fond memories when I
was younger was the sole reason why I took it back up when I was in my early 20s. For me, it wasn’t a big deal that my mom was into fishing in what is perceived as a male dominated sport and back then even more so. It was great to be in and amongst it. Watching my mom fish just normalised it for me. When I was younger, I wanted to be with my mom. I used to follow her down the river, watch her fish, try to copy her and that’s really how I learned. I wanted to emulate her. Still now, when we go out together and fish, they’re definitely our happiest times.
Everything changed when I was given my trout and salmon rods for my 21st birthday. It felt like this was my passion or at least this was my own adventure. I was ready to go out there by myself.
There’s something amazing about travelling but I also so love just coming home. If I had to choose, I would definitely choose home because there’s something really, really special about
Pictures from a family album ... Marina Gibson says her mother has been her angling inspiration
getting to know your home water. The Tyne is just phenomenal fishing. You’ve got salmon, you’ve got trout, you’ve got sea trout, and they have a relatively healthy population. In the last few years, they’ve seen more than 30,000 migratory fish run this river and considering it was sterile 50 to 60 years ago, it’s incredible. It also gives hopes to other rivers struggling with their fish populations. It’s a really good example of when a river is cleaned up and people come together and start putting the health of the river first, then only good things can come from it
We’ve seen so many changes since February, seeing the river in different heights, floods, it’s just a really interesting place to be. It’s so important to protect places like this because they’re rare and the ecosystem, environment and wildlife around it is just so incredibly special. That’s why supporting organisations like the Angling Trust is so important because all of the initiatives and the campaigns are to protect these ecosystems. And did you know, if you sign up to the Angling Trust membership part of your subscription goes towards Fish Legal who are fighting to protect these environments for future generations?
Atlantic salmon: now’s
the
time to reverse years of failure
In December 2023, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature listed wild Atlantic salmon as an endangered species in the UK. Numbers have dropped by 75% in the last 25 years and the IUCN predict a decline of up to 80% between 2010 and 2025.
This is a failure by governments and the international body, the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO), to prevent salmon from moving to the brink of extinction across large parts of their natural range.
It is a crisis for anglers and the economy, with salmon angling supporting over 37,000 jobs and over £1bn in household income (at 2009 prices) in England according to the Environment Agency.
This is why fighting to protect the remaining stocks of wild Atlantic salmon in our rivers, and see their return to healthy populations, is a campaign priority for the Angling Trust.
Through the work of the Missing Salmon Alliance, a coalition involving the Angling Trust, Fisheries Management Scotland, the Atlantic Salmon Trust, the Rivers Trust, Game and Wildlife Conservation and Fish Legal, and working with our own Salmon and Sea
Trout Advisory Group, we are continuing to push for more urgent action to address salmon’s decline.
The Environment Agency’s Five-Point Approach, created in 2015, has not been effective in stopping this decline. Based on the needs set out in our Salmon Manifesto the Angling Trust, as part of the Missing Salmon Alliance we are pushing hard for a new plan to protect salmon and improve river conditions to support their return.
With the 2025 annual meeting of NASCO taking place in Wales, this is a real opportunity for the UK to show leadership. We are calling on the UK and NASCO to ensure it has protection strategies that will see the decline in salmon halted and reversed.
This will mean tackling the alarming levels of mortality of salmon at sea. Salmon are a marine species as much as they are a freshwater fish. Unless we have proper protection for salmon at sea, from impacts such as bycatch in both coastal waters and on the high seas, as well as a greater understanding of the changes taking place due to climate change, then all the great work anglers and others are doing to protect and improving the river environment for salmon will be at risk.
The lake guardians
Carp legend Ian Chillcott discovers how the Angling Improvement Fund is helping to keep otters at bay
Ian Chillcott readily admits he probably spends a lot more time on lakes than most people do.
“Lakes have become very special to me, and so have the carp that swim in them,” says Ian, an ambassador for the Angling Trust and tackle manufacturers Fox, and renowned across the country for his carp fishing.
But like many carp anglers, he is concerned at the rise in the number of otters that are inhabiting our waters and surrounding countryside.
“Beautiful creatures they are,” continues Ian, “but they can be a problem taking and eating our heritage fish.”
Ian, known as ‘Chilly’ by friends and the angling community, visited The Elms Lake in Hertfordshire to see first-hand how predation by otters is being resolved with help from funding generated by Environment Agency rod licence sales.
The lake itself holds many species of freshwater fish – tench, roach, bream, rudd, pike, eels as well as mirror, common and crucian carp – and is situated close to the River Chess in
Top: Fishery Management Advisor Jake Davoile showing Ian Chillcott (left) and Andy Gibson how to maintain an otterproof fence
Right: Drone picture of the The Elms Lake with the otter-proof fence in place
Rickmansworth. A few years ago, otters were seen swimming in the Chess and not long after members of The Elms Angling Society, who lease the lake, discovered carcasses of big carp on the bank.
The club got in touch with Jake Davoile, one of the Angling Trust’s Fishery Management Advisors who can help fisheries impacted by predation, predominantly from otters and cormorants.
“I came down as quickly as possible and walked around the lake with some of the club’s members,” recalls Jake. “We found otter spraints alongside the river, and we found runs coming from the river to the lake. We also found carcasses of carp and it was quite clear that an otter had taken them.
“I went through the various options open to the club, but the only real option to keep the otters out was to erect a fence. I also explained that funding towards the costs might be available through the Angling Improvement Fund, which is administered by the Angling Trust and is
funded by rod licence money. It’s a great way of using anglers’ licence money to directly support clubs and fisheries.”
The club applied for a grant and received £6,000 towards their project. A few months later, an otter-proof fence was erected around the lake. However, Jake’s assistance didn’t end there.
“We stress the importance for ongoing checks and maintenance,” says Jake. “I would always recommend a dedicated monthly check around a fence and also following high water and strong winds, particularly around inflows and outflows. There are instances where otters will find weaknesses within that fence, whether it’s not been maintained properly or through a branch falling on top of it.
“We can then offer a service to come down and give the fence an MOT, look at it, highlight the issues and get those repaired. If an otter is trapped within that fishery, we have been trained to trap that otter and remove it from within the fishery fence and put it directly back on the outside, or onto a or stream nearby.
“And that support costs the club absolutely nothing. Our roles and all of our services are fully funded by rod licence money, so if you’re having any issues get in touch and we’ll be right out to help you.”
Taking Ian and Jake on a tour of the lake’s perimeter, Andy Gibson from The Elms Angling Society tells them the club – and its members – are very pleased with the outcome.
“The appearance is amazing, and the club members are really happy because we now have a secure lake,” adds Andy. “The Angling Trust are there to help us. They’re available to any club. Just get in touch with them and they can guide you through what you need to do to protect your fishery, protect your anglers and improve the environment.”
Between 2019 and 2023, the Angling Improvement Fund provided nearly £626,000 funding for 134 projects involving otter fencing. The total value of those projects was £2,172,500.
In the same period, the Angling
Improvement Fund gave £148,000 towards 26 projects involved in measures to reduce the threat of predation from cormorants. Those projects had a total value of £427,972.
Andy Petch is the Angling Improvement Fund Manager and says that any fishery in England is eligible to apply, including angling clubs, syndicate venues, commercials and local authorities that are providing angling opportunities.
“The application process is online and opens in April for predation projects,” he adds. “There’s step-by-step guidance on the Angling Trust website and I would highly recommend applicants familiarise themselves with what is required as the more time and effort that is put into the application, the more likely it is to succeed.”
In addition to otters, the Angling Trust’s Fishery Management Advisors – Jake in the south of England and Richard Bamforth in the north – give advice on other predation matters, such as fish-eating birds like cormorants and goosanders.
and Ian
members
Society. Our Fishery Management Advisors provide free advice on cormorants, otters and fence requirements
Top: Jake
with
of The Elms Angling
This is likely to include site visits resulting in bespoke advice on:
• How to apply for Individual and Areabased Cormorant control licence.
• Coordination of action through Areabased licences.
• Monitoring bird numbers and evidencing the impacts of predation.
RSPCA halts release of rescued seals in River Nene
Earlier this year, the Angling Trust called on the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) to stop releasing rescued seals into the tidal River Nene at Sutton Bridge following evidence that some had become resident in the waters around Peterborough, causing significant damage to freshwater fish stocks.
Working with Peterborough & District Angling Association and another 24 clubs in Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire and Norfolk, we expressed concern at the increasing number of tagged seals released from the RSPCA Rehabilitation and Rescue Centre at East Winch that had travelled upstream into freshwater environments instead of heading out to sea. Tagged seals were regularly seen living around Peterborough, some 30 miles from the coast.
A seal’s natural habitat is in marine environments and, while they occasionally travel upstream into rivers, prolonged periods in freshwater environments can be detrimental to their own health and have an unsustainable and damaging impact upon fish stocks, other freshwater wildlife, and the biodiversity of freshwater ecosystems.
As a result, the RSPCA have suspended the release of rescued seals at Sutton Bridge while data and other information is gathered and consultations on alternative release options take place.
How to contact our Fishery Management Advisors
Jake Davoile: South West, South East, London, South Midlands, Eastern Region of England 07949 703206 or jake.davoile@anglingtrust.net
Richard Bamforth: North West, North East, Yorkshire and Humber, Lincolnshire, East Midlands, West Midlands 07904 041518 or richard.bamforth@anglingtrust.net
My faith and fishing are a form of meditation
‘It does not matter what background, race or gender you come from – it’s all about what you catch and how you did it’
Brigepal Singh is a legendary figure amongst the London angling community where he regularly fishes on the Grand Union Canal, River Lea and Thames, and is renowned for catching chub.
His angling journey began after his father’s friend emigrated and gave him a fishing rod, sparking a lifelong love of the sport which has spanned over 40 years.
Now aged 57, Brigepal, who lives in Hackney, features in an Angling Trust film which explores the parallels between his Sikh faith
and fishing as meditative practices, as well as his strong sense of community, volunteering work at his local temple and as part of his ‘angling family’, where he has encouraged young people to try the sport.
The documentary is part of a series of We Fish As One films featuring beautifully shot vignettes of anglers from diverse backgrounds who have found their way into the sport through various means and life circumstances.
The Angling Trust hopes Brigepal’s story will inspire more city dwellers, especially the next generation of anglers, to enjoy blue-green spaces as part of our free and low-cost Get Fishing events.
“My faith and fishing are both the same,” says Brigepal. “It’s like a form of
Fishing for Wellbeing
Fishing
meditation for me. Both allow me to free my mind. I also love being in nature.
“I started fishing on the River Lea, near Springfield Marina and Tottenham Locks, where I learned a lot, especially since I didn’t have a car and could walk there. As the years went on, I bought an old van, which allowed me to travel further, exploring fishing spots all over London and the surrounding counties. Despite most of my fishing being on the Lea, I was initially daunted by the Thames.
“I had no knowledge of where or how to fish such a large river, but I overcame that fear by diving in and gaining experience over time. Eventually, I fell in love with the Thames and split my time between both rivers – fishing the Thames during summer and the Lea in the winter months until the close season for chub.
“In fishing, we are a family. You are an angler. I am an angler. I’ve made lifelong friends. I’m very grateful to angling, and it does not matter what background, race, or gender you come from – it’s all about what you catch and how you did it.
“The only barriers in fishing are the ones you put up yourself. No matter the rain, sleet or snow, this is what I love. It’s the reason I get up at silly hours
About We Fish As One
We Fish As One is the Angling Trust’s long-term community inclusion campaign that aims to actively develop, and to profile local outreach programmes and activities. This will harness the power of fishing as a community building activity, so that people from all backgrounds can experience the life-changing benefits of the sport of angling.
in the morning. “I’m worried that we may lose future generations of anglers to mobile devices, iPads, and screens. Angling is such a great activity for the wellbeing of young people, and I’ve seen firsthand the benefits it can have, especially among those with autism and ADHD.
“We used to have a great fishing event over the school holidays for two weekends in Hillingdon, but sadly that stopped when the pandemic hit. Luckily, the Angling Trust supports fantastic beginners’ events in London through its Get Fishing programme, like Get Hooked on Fishing in Ealing.
“It would be great to see even more opportunities created for young people, as finding the right support is crucial.”
Clive Copeland, Head of Participation at the Angling Trust says: “Every angler has a story to tell and it’s not just about the ‘one that got away’.
“Fishing has the power to build communities and bring people together. It is also an opportunity for stillness and Brigepal’s story captures this essence.
“We hope this breathtaking film will capture the next generation of anglers and inspire Londoners to look beyond the city’s bricks and mortar to enjoy and fully utilise blue green spaces, perhaps at one of our Get Fishing events.”
In 2023, about 75% of the 43,224 people who participated in the Angling Trust’s Get Fishing events across England were under 18.
About Get Fishing
Get Fishing is supported by the Environment Agency, Sport England and commercial partners Angling Direct and Shakespeare Tackle, and is an Angling Trust campaign to get more people fishing more often. Each year we support hundreds of events for all ages and abilities.
For more information about fishing events and coaches, visit www.anglingtrust.net/getfishing.
Brigepal Singh is a familiar sight on his local canals
The making of a future coach
All anglers amass a huge knowledge of how to catch fish, built up over years of angling, but what happens to this personal database of angling skills if it is not passed on to the next generation?
In truth it vanishes into the ether. So why not share it with the next generation of anglers, whether they are new to the sport or looking to develop their skills?
Becoming a licensed angling coach can be one the most rewarding aspects of your angling journey, there is nothing quite like seeing those new to angling catching their first fish.
The Angling Trust currently offers two courses for those who wish to begin a new chapter in angling.
Firstly, the Event Support Volunteer award, which is aimed at those who want to dip their toes into angling coaching or support other coaches in a volunteer role without having to commit to taking overall responsibility for event delivery.
It’s a three-hour online course that has elements of coaching skills, event safety and safeguarding young people and vulnerable adults. It even includes a DBS check. The cost is £50 per person, but currently the Environment Agency is covering the cost of the first 100 places
with bursary funding, money from rod licence sales invested back into angling.
If you want to become a qualified and licensed coach we deliver our Level 2 Event Lead Coach course, which includes all the skills to become a lead coach. This also includes coaching tools in greater depth, managing risk at an event, safeguarding and once licensed, insurance to cover you wherever and whenever you coach.
Licensed coaches also can purchase exclusive coaching clothing and have access to all the benefits of Angling Trust membership, plus additional discounts on angling tackle.
The Level 2 course is run over a weekend, followed by four linked skill development sessions and a final assessment. Cost is currently £290 per person which includes a DBS check and your coaching licence free for the first year.
Environment Agency bursary support of up to 50% is available for volunteers taking Level 2 with a commitment to delivering 10 free sessions in return.
All the details of courses are available at www.anglingtrust.net/getinvolved/ coaching
Becoming a licensed coach can be very rewarding and help to inspire the next generation of anglers
What’s not to love about tench?
How the Tenchfishers are reaching out to the angling world to safeguard the future of one of the UK’s favourite freshwater fish
Variety is the spice of life and fishing is no exception. Tench fishing can be enjoyed on a wide range of water: intimate ponds, estate lakes, vast gravel pits and reservoirs and not forgetting canals and slow-moving rivers. Feeder fishing for tench is hugely popular and effective, for others catching tench on the float is one of the ultimate pleasures in angling.
The ‘rush for carp’ and commercial demands often mean the notion of a balanced fishery with a head of tench gets overlooked, although Mr Tench is
supposedly one of the most popular of our coarse fish and was voted the UK’s favourite fish among freshwater anglers a few years ago.
They are quite an expensive and –compared to carp – relatively slow growing stock fish, yet their longevity is good, and they are a hardy species. There may be both a reluctance to stock and a shortage of mature fish for sale, so tench need someone to stand in their corner.
It was the restocking work that the late
David Watson of the Tenchfishers, with the Environment Agency, undertook at Sywell Reservoir from 2011 onwards that really awoke interest in thinking what we, the Tenchfishers, could do on a bigger, national scale to provide a focus for ‘all things tench’.
So, after the Tenchfishers reached their 60th anniversary in 2014, the group founded the National Tench Heritage Alliance (NTHA) initiative as a means of working with agencies and clubs to reach out to the wider angling world. The name embraced three key strands: the species, our desire to protect its future and the acknowledgement that we cannot do this alone.
During the autumn of 2019, preliminary
meetings were held with the Angling Trust which resulted in a conference in January 2020 where a partnership was established with the assistance of several individual angling clubs. With the generous help of the Angling Trust, the immediate outcome (once the pandemic was over) was the development in 202223 of the Tench Fishing the Future web portal on the Angling Trust website. Here there is a wealth of information about tench, stocking and breeding and the appropriate environment, including video presentations, case studies and a virtual fisheries online discussion.
Meanwhile, further stocking by both the Tenchfishers and the Environment Agency at Sywell Reservoir continued.
Whether by float or feeder, it is always a joy to catch tench
So, what is the situation today?
Sonar scans conducted by the Environment Agency have proved encouraging showing good numbers of fish in the region of the fish refuges in out-of-bounds areas, which were constructed by the group in 2017. Smaller tench are now being caught and have been seen in shallow areas of the reservoir and some genuinely nice fish have been caught. The Tenchfishers continue to raise funds for future stockings. They are also engaged in catch-data collection to enable both the group and
the Environment Agency to monitor the regeneration project.
The Tenchfishers are also committed to angling education in a number of other ways and have a sponsored a group of long-standing members as Angling Trust licensed Level 2 coaches. Fish safety including safe rigs for tench are top priorities. In addition, on the YouTube channel Tenchfishers TV, there is a growing number of videos about rig safety when fishing for tench.
The coaches have wasted no time in getting out and about providing support to Angling Trust coaching events and Masterclasses. For example, support has been provided for a series of events with Leamington Spa Angling Association in their bid to provide a gateway to encourage youngsters into angling. There is more in the pipeline for the coaches to provide support for multi-agency groups and social prescribing services. They have also been active with the Fishing for Schools organisation which does so much good work with youngsters, and there are plans are afoot in the not-too-distant
Top: Many familiar faces at the 2024 Tench Masterclass
Above:
The Abingdon & Oxford Anglers Alliance’s annual Tench Social was a sell out
Chairman Pat
presents Wyn Jones with his award as winner of the National Tench Championship 2024
Left:
Dower (left)
future to train more coaches.
It has also been a pleasure to work with other individual angling clubs and July 2017 saw the first of several tench teachins organised by the Tenchfishers at the invitation of Farnham and District AC. In addition, for a number of years the Abingdon & Oxford Anglers Alliance has run an annual Tench Social on their Dorchester Lake to help promote tench and tench fishing within their club.
These are primarily social occasions where tench rigs and techniques are discussed. All the generated funds are put directly back into the club with the aim of further supporting the mission to provide mixed species angling and to protect the heritage of tench fishing. Each year the events have sold out within hours, proving their popularity. If your club is interested in running similar events and would like some support from the Tenchfishers please email tenchfishersgroup@gmail.com for advice and to find out how we might help.
These events have expanded still further and July 2023 saw the Tenchfishers and the Angling Trust again working together to deliver an inaugural 48hour “Tench Masterclass” at Farnham Angling Society’s Mill Lane venue, where a group of auction-winners joined tench fishing experts. This event was such a success that it was repeated in May 2024 on Dorchester Lake in Oxfordshire at the kind invitation of the Abingdon & Oxford Anglers’ Alliance.
number of personal best captures. There is an official YouTube video by awardwinning film maker Hugh Miles on Tenchfishers TV titled Tench Masterclass 2024.
Finally, The Tenchfishers National Championship, last held in 2005, was resurrected in 2023 at Oxlease Lake, Linear Fisheries. The group wanted to hold an open event that gathered lovers of tench together for a friendly competition which, more importantly, promoted tench fishing. The event was a huge success with some lovely fish caught and impressive prizes and trophies for the winners. All fish caught were weighed as soon as possible by Tenchfishers stewards, with fish care being prioritised and retention kept to a minimum.
The 2024 Championship followed and made, we think, an even better eventhopefully those who attended both events felt it was! Luckily, the tench decided to play ball and there were seven PBs landed over the weekend with six 9lbs, with two weighing 9lb 12oz. Participants all received a goody bag, seemed to have a great time, and, most importantly, enjoyed their tench fishing! Details of the 2025 event will be released in the near future on www.tenchfishers.com, and via our Instagram and Facebook pages. Films from the 2023 and 2024 events can be found on Tenchfishers TV and titled National Tench Championships.
Once again, a combination of one-onone coaching and group demonstrations helped participants to develop their tench fishing skills over the two days and even delivered a
All this has only been possible with the commitment of scores of members and friends. A key long-term aim of the Tenchfishers is to increase access to good quality tench fishing and to ensure the long-term health of still water angling as a pastime and passion. We are now seeing clubs recognising the importance of mixed fisheries for pleasure fishing, while some top carp fisheries are offering fantastic opportunities to chase specimen fish of many other species, including tench. The Tenchfishers will do all they can to foster these encouraging developments.
Preserving pollack in the southwest
Fish ‘n’ chips - the Great British favourite. Yet when cod stocks came under pressure some years ago, its close relative, the pollack, was touted as a sustainable alternative. Admittedly, the flesh of “poor man’s cod” – as the pollack is often referred to – isn’t as white as its much-loved cousin, but with similar taste and texture, it seemed it could be the perfect substitute.
Since then, however, anglers, charter boat skippers, and commercial fishermen have expressed increasing concern that pollack are on the decline –both in numbers and especially in size. They have long warned of an impending pollack stock collapse off the southwest coast of England, where the main fisheries are located.
Their experiences of spending every day at sea have provided these communities with unique insights into fish stocks in our waters, but for years these experiences were ignored.
Concerned by the pollack’s demise, charter skippers and anglers formed a collaboration with scientists via a Fisheries Industry Science Partnership (FISP), which was granted funding by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Pollack FISP is a two-year project led by Dr Emma Sheehan from the University of Plymouth in partnership with the Professional Boatman’s Association (PBA), the University of York, the Marine Biological Association (MBA) and the Angling Trust, with support from Cefas. The project will finish in March 2025.
The project aims to understand pollack movement and site fidelity across the southwest, gather fisheries data to improve understanding of stock dynamics, and interview pollack fishing stakeholders to identify historical trends in populations and attitudes toward management. Using this data, Pollack FISP aims to answer vital questions that can help improve fisheries management, ultimately safeguarding pollack populations and the coastal communities that depend on them.
As part of the research, the Pollack FISP tagging and tracking team, led by Dr Thomas Stamp, have fitted 92 pollack off the Devon coast with acoustic tags. Via a network of strategically placed acoustic receivers anchored to the seabed, signals are detected from any tagged fish that swims within roughly 300 metres of the receiver.
The team has already uncovered exciting findings about the daily routines of pollack. Some individuals appear to move between different locations for the day and night. To date, most pollack have remained within 20 to 30 kilometres of where they were caught, but researchers don’t yet know how far pollack travel in their lifetimes or whether there are any seasonal changes in their movements, such as during their spawning season from January to March.
Hannah Rudd, Angling Trust’s Marine Policy & Research Manager, says a unique aspect of the project is how closely it partners with recreational charter skippers to gather fisheries data. Skippers are collecting biological data on pollack, including length and maturity, as well as stomach contents and otoliths (fish ear bones), which provide information on age and growth. To date, the consortium of 14 skippers has collected length data from over 15,000 pollack from 716 trips, helping to inform our understanding of stock abundance, composition and recruitment.
Discover more about angling and science
Secret lives of black bream
Anglers and scientists working together to learn more about a summer favourite
It’s a sunny day on the South Coast, and a party of anglers is heading out in search of one of the UK’s favourite summer species – the stunning black bream. They are a popular target around the Dorset, Hampshire and Sussex coastline, yet, surprisingly, we know very little about them. Where do they go over winter? How far do they travel? Do they return to the same place? What is going on at their nesting sites?
Angling for Sustainability is a collaboration between anglers, scientists from the University of Plymouth and fisheries managers that aims to find answers to these important questions to create a sustainable future for black bream and recreational angling.
It’s a partnership that includes the Angling Trust, the Professional Boatman’s Association, Natural England and Southern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA). The project is tracking black bream around the Dorset coast to identify which habitats are essential for the species, how the bream behave when they’re using these habitats and how angling interacts with their behaviour. The collaboration is funded by Defra under their Fisheries Industry Science Partnership (FISP) scheme.
The Angling for Sustainability team tracks black bream by fitting them with
an acoustic tag that emits a unique high frequency ‘ping’. Specially-designed receivers deployed on the seabed listen out for a tagged fish and can pick up signals from fish swimming within about 300 metres.
The black bream project has deployed 55 new receivers around Dorset, the Solent, and the Isle of Wight. These are part of the University of Plymouth Fish Intel Network of nearly 200 receivers along the South Coast, from Cornwall to Sussex, listening out for the pings of a range of tagged fish in our seas.
The research team is also sent data from a wider network of receivers deployed by other researchers all around Europe, so if one of the tagged bream ends up beyond the South Coast of England, they will hopefully know about it.
Tapping into the wide coverage of the receiver network means scientists at the University of Plymouth can study how far fish travel. The new Angling for Sustainability receivers also provide insights into how black bream behave in nesting grounds. This is made possible by creating close clusters of receivers – known as fine-scale array – which show the movement of fish in fine detail. These receivers are placed at well-known spawning grounds along the south coast and provide information on how black bream behave at these sites.
Catching black bream off the South Coast ready for tagging
Before the Angling for Sustainability project, the team at the University of Plymouth tagged black bream through a European collaboration known as FISH INTEL, with 64 black bream being tagged around Sussex in 2022 in partnership with Natural England, Sussex IFCA, and Sussex Wildlife Trust. Under the new Defra-funded project, 136 bream were tagged off the Dorset coast in 2023. Tagging has continued in 2024, with another 40 fish tagged earlier in the year. The tags are small enough not to affect the fish but large enough to contain a battery that lasts up to two years.
The University of Plymouth team visits each receiver once every six months to collect all the data it has been storing. In April, they headed to Dorset for a data download trip and were thrilled by the results. The data revealed fascinating insights into the lives of black bream and their nesting sites.
As fish caught and tagged in the spawning grounds are released straight back to where they were caught, they provide immediate insights into their lives around nesting sites.
Tagging data collected through the project so far indicates that most black bream initially remained close to the site they were tagged, staying nearby for an average of about 10 days. During this time, some fish demonstrated evidence of nesting behaviour as they remained almost stationary in a very small area. While other fish were much more mobile, they still stayed within the small area of the nesting site. This interesting contrast may reflect the different behaviour of males and female and that’s something the team hope to study further.
In 2024, the first tagged fish returning to Dorset were detected in mid-March. The return of last year’s black bream means that the team can now track these fish over an entire breeding season, hopefully revealing insights into how long they spend at nesting sites. A study from Sussex found that, on average, tagged black bream stayed at nesting sites for just over a month. The 2024
data should hopefully discover whether a similar pattern will be seen in Dorset and whether individual fish return at the same time each year.
The team have already detected fewer bream in Dorset and Sussex over the winter, suggesting that many migrate away from their summer nesting and feeding areas during this time. Some of the bream tagged in Dorset have been detected in Devon and Cornwall, while others moved east and were redetected on Sussex receivers. Other fish travelled even further, with tagged bream detected in the Channel Islands over the winter.
In Sussex, most of the bream detected returned to where they were tagged. Even comparing two nesting sites just 18km apart revealed very little crossover – most fish returned to the same site they were caught the year before. This shows a remarkable homing ability. Detections in the Channel Islands prove that some black bream are highly migratory and travel hundreds of miles during the winter, yet we’ve seen them return the following spring to within a few hundred metres of where they were caught the year before.
Dr Alice Hall, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Plymouth, said: “Our early results are already showing interesting information, and I am excited to know what the rest of the project reveals.”
Dr Peter Davies, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Plymouth, added: “Right from the very start, this project has been a collaboration with anglers. The ideas and information they provide are essential to our data collection. With their help, we hope to contribute valuable information to support sustainable fishing.”
The next Angling for Sustainability workshop will be held in Lymington (23 January 2025), and there will be a final event in Plymouth (12 February 2025). If you’d like to join future events, please email fishtracking@plymouth.ac.uk.
Shark week success for anglers and scientists
There was an energy in the air. A buzz that anyone familiar with time at sea knows in their bones. After years of talking about the possibility of tagging blue sharks off the coast of Penzance, the moment was finally here.
Blue sharks are highly migratory species wandering thousands of kilometres each year. During the summer months they venture into British waters, much to the delight of anglers who have long enjoyed targeting these impressive fish. Over the years, engaging in research projects and promoting best practice has become of increasing importance to participants of the recreational shark fishery. The observations of anglers and skippers can help us all to learn more about the lives of blue sharks – a globally threatened species.
Shark Hub UK is a partnership that brings together recreational angling and academic organisations with a mission to learn more about British sharks. Founded in 2021, the partnership has focused on building the collaboration from the ground up with recreational charter skippers. With many of the skippers and anglers already participating in the Cooperative Shark Tagging Program run by the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a natural step seemed to form a partnership with the team from America.
In July 2024 that dream was finally realised, with scientists from the NOAA flying over to the United Kingdom for a week of shark angling-filled workshops and tagging trips. Relatively little is known about blue sharks in the Northeastern Atlantic Ocean and this project is hoping to shed some light on their movements.
We hosted a workshop at the Marine Biological Association in Plymouth where leading scientific experts on sharks were invited. At the workshop, we introduced
researchers to the value of working in true partnerships with the recreational angling community to learn more about sharks in British waters. The team then headed down to Looe in Cornwall for a workshop co-hosted by the Shark Angling Club of Great Britain at the Sardine Factory. For many years, recreational charter skippers and anglers targeting sharks around the southwest of England have participated in the NOAA Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.
Perhaps the most exciting part of this project is the tagging. Over 2,000 floy tags will be deployed this summer thanks to the support of local charter skippers and anglers. In collaboration with researchers from the University of Exeter, NOAA and Shark Hub UK, we were also able to successfully tag six blue sharks with satellite tags. Thank you to Robin Chapman from FV Bite Adventures for taking the team out of Penzance and getting them on the fish. Without the efforts of John McMaster, Dr Simon Thomas, and the consortium of skippers contributing to the Pat Smith Database, none of this would be possible. With the support of SeaSavers, the Pat Smith Database is currently collecting mucous samples from recreationally caught blue sharks, porbeagles, and threshers to inform scientific studies on their genetics and wider populations. Each year the coordinated efforts of recreational shark anglers and skippers contributing to advancing science and conservation on British sharks increases, and their shared success is a testament to all involved. We’re thrilled that this trans-Atlantic collaboration will receive more funding in 2025. Keep an eye on the Angling Trust website for more details.
Read more about our sea angling science projects
Catchwise: biggest survey for over a decade
Catchwise
Across England and Wales, our surveyors spoke to over 1,400 anglers about their fishing and why it is so important to them. As the biggest survey of recreational sea angling in over a decade, Catchwise involved a charter boat and shore angling survey over the last 12 months. It aims to provide evidence on the important contribution of recreational sea angling to coastal community and bolster our voice in fisheries policy like Fisheries Management Plans. The final report will be available in early 2025.
FinVision
Anglers depend on young fish to become adult fish. But we know relatively little about how some of our favourite species use coastal environments in their earliest life stages. With over 90% of seagrass meadows – an important habitat for juvenile fish – lost from our coastlines, many of their preferred places to hang out are also shrinking. If we are to have healthy fish stocks for angling now and in the future, we need to restore and protect these vital coastal habitats. Using exciting camera technology deployed at key sites around the south coast, FinVision is working collaboratively with recreational angling organisations, including the Angling Trust, National Mullet Club, Institute of Fisheries Management and Bass Anglers Sportfishing Society, and scientists at the University of Plymouth, and both the Association of IFCAs and Southern IFCA, on a citizen science project to learn more about our favourite fish in their earliest life stages.
Angling for Sustainability
In addition to black bream, Angling for Sustainability is also tracking sharks and rays around the Solent and beyond. In collaboration with the Professional Boatman’s Association, 22 undulate ray, 13 thornback ray, 48 tope and 30 starry smooth hound have been tagged. We have also hosted workshops at Eastney Cruising Association in Southsea to hear from local charter skippers and recreational anglers about their views on the movements of their species in the Solent. If you spot a tagged fish, we would love to hear from you! For information on how to identify a tagged fish and to report one, please contact us at fishtracking@plymouth.ac.uk
All about the Bass
In July 2024, we were delighted to join a workshop held at the University of Essex in partnership with the Bass Anglers’ Sportfishing Society. The workshop bought together local recreational anglers with leading bass scientists and policymakers to discuss the latest in bass science. During the day all attendees also discussed their hopes and fears for the bass fishery moving forward. It was a successful day with 100% of attendees voting that similar events in the future would benefit both recreational fishing and bass science – another example of the power of collaboration in driving positive outcomes for our sport and the species we love.
Updates on Fisheries Management Plans
Due to the election, Fisheries Management Plans have been a slow burn in 2024, but momentum will soon pick up in the latter part of the year. Fisheries Management Plans offer the recreational angling sector, for the first time, an opportunity to have its say on how fisheries should be managed. Key recreationally important species like bass, black bream and wrasse are all covered by the plans. Keep an eye on the Angling Trust website and Sea Angling Facebook group for the latest updates and opportunities on how to get involved. The Angling Trust is represented on all relevant working groups and is continually fighting for recreational angling and the species we depend on.
Talent Pathway –developing skills of England’s young stars
In any sport, progression is key. Taking the raw talent of a newcomer, nurturing that natural ability, developing their skills and instilling confidence and discipline are all important stepping stones on the way to producing a world class competitor, stepping stones that form the bedrock of the Angling Trust’s Talent Pathway schemes.
From humble beginnings, the Talent Pathway is now a fully-fledged programme across coarse and sea angling tasked with identifying and developing future talent for international competition, the fruits of which can be seen in the teams and results from this year’s World Championships.
It’s spawned gold medal winning sides and individuals, but more importantly, the Talent Pathway has ensured a plentiful supply of young angling talent to secure the future of English international angling – and to give respective team managers a bit of a headache when it comes to selection!
Thousands of youngsters have passed through the system down the years, and
while many may not have pulled on an England shirt in competition, all have gone away better anglers, honing and developing their skills for whatever path their angling takes them down.
On the coarse fishing front, Talent Pathway has been an unbridled success. This year’s Under 15, Under 20 and Under 25 World Championships sides have all passed through the scheme, including new Under 15s World Champion Barnaby Newman and collectively, they returned with team gold medals from the Under 15 and 20 categories.
Left: England Under 15s: World team gold winners
Below:
Even the main Men’s side is beginning to see Talent Pathway graduates making their mark, Andrew Cranston and Josh Newman being on the fringes of the squad and likely to figure for England for many years to come. Indeed, some of the Under 15 and 20 anglers are also tipped to break into the main team in the future.
A handful of graduates that might not have quite made it on the England front are now winning big domestic events individually too, including former Fish O’Mania champion Kristian Jones and current hot shots Rob Swan and Brad Lucas.
At women’s level, Talent Pathway graduate Sarah Taylor has just broken into the World Champs side and many others, including the likes of Lauren Stevens, Elle Pedrick and Lucia Archard have their sights set firmly
England Under 20s: World Champions
Above: Barnaby Newman: Under 15s World Champion
on fishing for their country. It’s all left the man at the helm, England ace Matt Godfrey, a very proud man.
“Talent Pathway was created well over a decade ago by Worksop DAA coach Glyn Williams, who wanted a system in place to get anglers at a young age and teach them about higher levels of match fishing to secure the future for international teams – I even went on the very first one!” Matt said.
“Once I joined Guru, it made sense to sponsor the event, and we couldn’t be happier with how it’s gone. We get so many applications to take part, which is great to see, but more importantly, Talent Pathway allows the involvement of a bigger audience to get their chance to fish for England. Even if they’re not selected, the anglers get four amazing days on the bank with England internationals to improve their fishing.”
Currently the likes of Matt and fellow Guru stars Frankie Gianoncelli and James Dent are at the helm, but in the early days, the Talent Pathway called on the help of internationals Des Shipp, Lee Kerry, Kayleigh Dowd, Julie Abbott and Joe Roberts to assist and pass on their wealth of knowledge.
“Even though we’re dealing with youngsters, the Talent Pathway is very serious, as it’s the method we use to pick the England youth teams – it’s certainly not just a day out on the bank with your favourite angler!” Matt explained. “Whatever venue the World Champs is going to be on, we gear the three Talent
Pathway days and then the final towards that, using the likely methods and baits so that those anglers who do get selected from the final are already familiar with what’s required. It’s a strict programme of coaching and training that is quite military in a way.
“What we look for is an angler that can progress and has the right attitude,” Matt continued. “Raw fishing talent is a must, but we also develop many other aspects away from the actual fishing. These include independence of thought, being able to take on board instruction from the management and the ability to be a team player. Basically, we are developing strong sporting skills that are no different to what you’d expect in a footballer or cricketer.”
On the sea front, former Youth World Champion Steve Rathbone has recently taken over the helm from sea match legend Chris Clark, and he is keen to see the Talent Pathway expand around the country to give more youngsters the chance to fish for England.
“Currently, we only run one pathway for 10 to 18-year-olds in Lymington, so we don’t get to see all of the talent that there is. Our next move is to hold events all over England,” Steve explained.
“We work a little differently to the coarse pathway in that the England team isn’t selected on the basis of the two days that we run. Anglers have to apply to be considered for the Under 16 and 23 shore teams – the pathway is there to introduce and develop anglers we’ve never seen or
Above: Guru Talent Pathway training day
Above right: The Sea Talent Pathway at Lymington
heard of before.”
Chris Clark started it all way back in the 90s, long before the Talent Pathway monicker was applied. Now it sees Steve working alongside current Under 16s Manager Paul Driver and a host of England internationals, including current Penn Sea League champion Saul Page – and Chris is still involved in an advisory role.
“The sea pathway takes in both classroom and practical aspects,”
Steve continued. “Day one is indoors, looking at making rigs, baiting them, preparing bait, a bit of watercraft, casting techniques and safety on the beach. We
then all head to the beach on day two to put it into practice and catch a few fish.
“The aim is twofold. For us, it’s a great way of scouting, uncovering hidden talent and bringing it on to the standard needed to fish for England. For the anglers, it’s about learning new skills of strengthening current ones to make them better anglers, even if they chose not to apply to fish for their country.”
Steve added: “Most of the current Under 16 and 23 squads have been through our doors – but we want to see more of our young crop of sea anglers, hence the expansion plans.”
Right: England Youth Loch Style team
Far right: England Men’s Coarse Angling team
Middle right: England Masters’ team with bronze medals
Bottom right: Under 16s Shore Team with national medals
Below: World Champion
Samantha Sim
International competition –how did England’s teams fare?
Another busy year saw 26 England teams travelling far and wide for World, European and Home Nations duty across coarse, sea and game disciplines – and the campaign still isn’t over yet with over a dozen events yet to take place.
There were England medals aplenty – 12 in team and individual – new world champions in Barnaby Newman and Samantha Sim, and more importantly, encouraging signs from those teams that didn’t quite make the podium.
MAY
Feeder Coarse Angling
World Championships
Venue: River Guadiana, Spain
Date: Saturday May 4 and Sunday May 5
Team winners: Ireland
Individual winner: M Buchwalder, Ireland
England’s final position: 5th
England’s top performer: Steve Ringer: 6th
Masters Trout Angling
World Championships
Venue: Rozmberk, Czech Republic
Date: Sunday May 19 – Saturday May 25
Team winners: Italy
Individual winner: V SantiAmantini, Italy
England’s final position: 12th
Women’s Trout Angling
Loch Style Home International
Venue: Llyn Brenig, Wales
Date: Thursday May 23
Team winners: England
Men’s Trout Angling Loch Style Home International
Venue: Lough Ennell, Republic of Ireland
Date: Friday May 24
Team winners: Scotland
England’s final position: 4th
JUNE
World Feeder Club Coarse Angling Championships
Venue: Odivelas Dam, Portugal
Date: Saturday June 1 and Sunday June 2
Team winners: Folhadosa Fishing Club Portugal
England’s performances: Sensas Hot Rods: 25th Garbolino Team Gloucester: 27th
Veterans Coarse Angling World Championships
Venue: Plovdiv Rowing Course, Bulgaria
Date: Friday June 14 and Saturday June 15
Team winners: Italy
Individual winner: J Papp, Hungary
England’s final position: 4th
England’s top performer: Tommy Pickering: 6th
Masters Coarse Angling World Championships
Venue: Plovdiv Rowing Course, Bulgaria
Date: Friday June 14 and Saturday June 15
Team winners: Italy
Individual winner: A Botti, Italy
England’s final position: 3rd
England’s top performer: Darran Bickerton: 6th
Anglers With Disabilities Coarse Angling World Championships
Venue: Plovdiv Rowing Course, Bulgaria
Date: Friday June 14 and Saturday June 15
Team winners: Italy
Individual winner: R Centrih, Slovenia
England’s final position: 5th
England’s top performer: Lee Gregory: 9th
Men’s Boat Angling Home Nations Championships
Venue: Weymouth, England
Date: Saturday June 15 and Sunday June 16
Team winners: Ireland
England’s final position: 2nd
Men’s Trout Angling World Championships
Venue: Occitanie, France
Date: Saturday June 22 –Sunday June 30
Team winners: France
Individual winner: P Kuntz, France
England’s final position: 13th
Men’s Coarse Angling European Championships
Venue: Princess Margaret Canal, Netherlands
Date: Saturday June 29 and Sunday June 30
Team winners: France
Individual winner: R Ansing, Netherlands
England’s final position: 3rd
England’s top performer: Sean Ashby: 8th
JULY
Men’s Shore Angling Home Nations Championships
Venue: Montrose and Arbroath, Scotland
Date: Wednesday July 3 and Thursday July 4
Team winners: Ireland
England’s final position: 4th
Women’s Shore Angling Home Nations Championships
Venue: Montrose and Arbroath, Scotland
Date: Wednesday July 3 and Thursday July 4
Team winners: Ireland
England’s final position: 3rd
Under 23 Shore Angling Home Nations Championships
Venue: Montrose and Arbroath, Scotland
Date: Wednesday July 3 and Thursday July 4
Team winners: Scotland
England’s final position: 2nd
Under 16 Shore
Angling Home Nations Championships
Venue: Montrose and Arbroath, Scotland
Date: Wednesday July 3 and Thursday July 4
Team winners: England
Women’s Coarse Angling Carp World Championships
Venue: Balote Lake, Latvia
Date: Wednesday July 10 –
Saturday July 13
Team winners: Latvia
Individual winners: N Gina and O Lacrimioara-Andreea, Romania
Date: Wednesday September 4 – Saturday September 7
Team winners: Croatia
Individual winners: L Patsera and V Sudaltsev, Ukraine
England’s position: 7th
Freestyle Feeder
Coarse Angling World Championships
Venue: Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Date: Friday September 13 and Saturday September 14
Team winners: Romania
Individual winner: B Vuculescu, Romania
England’s final position: 14th
England’s top performer: Alex Dockerty 21st
TO BE FISHED
European Feeder Coarse Angling Challenge
Men’s Coarse Angling World Championships
Masters Feeder
Coarse Angling World Championships
Predator Artificial Baits Kayak World Championships
Men’s Boat Angling World Championships
Kayak Angling World Championships
Men’s Shore Angling World Championships
Women’s Shore Angling World Championships
Under 16 Shore Angling World Championships
Under 21 Shore Angling World Championships
Masters Shore Angling World Championships
National competitions’ roll of honour
The Angling Trust’s Competitions team delivered another packed calendar of national events, including 12 Nationals and several high-profile individual finals fished by thousands of anglers from across the country. From anglers with disabilities and juniors all the way through to the top end of the British match angling scene, everyone was catered for!
FEBRUARY
Angling Trust Winter League Final
Venue: Decoy Lakes and Fenland
Drains system
Date: Saturday February 24
Team winners:
Preston Innovations Black Horse
Individual winner: Zak Worby-Smith
MARCH
Angling Trust Silverfish Final
Venue: Barston Lakes
Date: Saturday March 9
Winner: Steve Hemingray
APRIL
Angling Trust Team Commercial
Stillwater National
Venue: Drennan Lindholme Lakes
Date: Saturday April 20
Team winners: Team UK
Individual winner: Rob Harbour
JUNE
Angling Trust Cadet National
Venue: Partridge Lakes
Date: Saturday June 29 and Sunday June 30
Team winners: Team Rammy
Individual winner: Harry Thwaites
Angling Trust Junior National
Venue: Partridge Lakes
Date: Saturday June 29 and Sunday June 30
Team winners: Sensas Future Networks
Individual winner: Ted Stewart
Angling Trust Youth National
Venue: Partridge Lakes
Date: Saturday June 29 and Sunday June 30
Team winners: Sensas Future Networks White
Individual winner: Harry Michael
JULY
Angling Trust Women’s National
Venue: MAP Marston Fields Fishery
Date: Saturday July 6
Winner: Leanne Knott
Angling Trust Anglers With Disabilities National
Venue: MAP Marston Fields Fishery
Date: Saturday July 6
Winner: Elliot Fay
Angling Trust/Free Spirit
Boddington Classic Final
Venue: Boddington Reservoir
Date: Saturday July 12 and Sunday July 13
Winner: Bogdan Mester
Fish O’Mania Final
Venue: Westwood Lakes
Date: Saturday July 27
Winner: Dave Shires
Angling Trust Veterans National
Venue: Tunnel Barn Farm Fishery
Date: Wednesday July 31
Winner: Tony Woods
Angling Trust Masters National
Venue: Tunnel Barn Farm Fishery
Date: Wednesday July 31
Winner: Dave Brown Snr
AUGUST
Angling Trust Individual National
Venue: Leeds-Liverpool Canal
Date: Saturday August 3
Winner: Colin Cliffe
Angling Trust Division One National
Venue: Leeds-Liverpool Canal
Date: Saturday August 17 2024
Team winners: Daiwa Gordon League
Individual winner: Shaun Bryan
Angling Trust Feeder National
Venue: Aire & Calder Canal
Date: Saturday August 24
Team winners: Aquastim Team Southfield
Individual winner: Andy Reid
SEPTEMBER
Angling Trust Division Two
National
Venue: Aire & Calder and New Junction Canals
Date: Saturday September 7
Team winners: Wakefield AC
Individual winner: Danny Myers
Angling Trust RiverFest Final
Venue: River Trent, Burton Joyce
Date: Saturday September 21 & Sunday September 22
Winner: Mike Bedding
Above: Colin Cliffe
1st Column : Leanne Knott (Centre)
2nd Column: Bogdan Mester
3rd Column : Shaun Bryan
Below: Danny Myers
TO BE FISHED
Angling Trust British Pike Championships Final
Grant funding successes help support our vital work
Angling Trust Finance and IT report
By Paul Gant, Head of Finance and IT
A year into my role at Angling Trust and Fish Legal, after 30 years in large and small commercial businesses, and I am now much clearer on what “not for profit” means.
It doesn’t actually mean breaking even each and every year. Instead, we should aim to maintain a sustainable level of reserves, and use any profits generated to support our ongoing mission to protect, promote and develop angling in England.
That said, Angling Trust did generate a small surplus in the year ended March 2024, £4k after receiving bank interest of £11k. This compares to £23k last year.
Reserves continue at a satisfactory level, however the Board aspires to build a slightly bigger buffer, so in coming years we will gradually build stronger reserves.
Analysing the 2024 results a little more deeply, total income of £3.8m is up 7% on previous year, with growth across grants received, including from Sport England (year two of five) and contract income from the Environment Agency, plus year one of a two-year Catchwise contract which monitors catches in selected coastal locations.
Income did decline year on year from membership (individuals down, fisheries/ clubs up), fundraising, competitions and coaching. The dip in coaching was caused by a hiatus in course delivery whilst the old Level 1 and Level 2 syllabuses were adjusted following the Whyte Report.
The Environment Agency’s second National Angling Strategic Services contract ended in March 2024, however Angling Trust successfully won the contract to deliver the third iteration, which is well underway as I write in late summer 2024. This is a four-year contract, with annual reviews, and sits alongside the Sport England System Partner grant, which runs through to March 2027.
Success in securing grant funding from the Esmee Fairburn Foundation continues to underpin and extend our campaigning, to protect and promote angling across our spheres of work. We have also continued to be successful in securing multiple smaller grants enabling the team to work in both freshwater and marine fisheries, including offshore. Overall grant funding is up 9% on last year and continues to be a key focus as we work hard to expand our influence
Angling Trust successfully bid for a two-year Catchwise contract which monitors fishing activity in coastal locations.
and share of voice in the protection and promotion of fish and fishing.
As a not for profit, we plan to spend our income in line with our five-year plan, which has been well explained earlier in The Angler. For these pages, I’ll simply summarise how we spend our income.
Total expenditure of £3.8m is up 8% on last year, with people costs (mainly salaries) also up 8% on the previous year. These represent two-thirds of total expenditure including staff expenses.
Direct project delivery costs have stepped up due to Catchwise, and competitions costs are down year-on-year, with the very modest surplus from domestic competitions directly invested in supporting Team England.
Whilst Finance and IT usually sit in the backroom of an organisation, facilitating all the good work of the customer facing teams, we’ve had a pretty busy year ourselves. We have
How do we spend the income?
replaced a long-standing financial system with a better, more modern tool, made claiming expenses much more user friendly, automated bank feeds and speeded up reporting cycles. In IT, we’ve standardised the tech we use, achieved Cyber Essentials accreditation and made our competitions ticketing more robust. I’d like to thank my team for all their hard work and support in my first year, as we step up our pace of change and innovation.
Fish Legal on sound footing after another busy year
Fish Legal and ACA Trustee Co Ltd Finance and IT report
By Paul Gant, Head of Finance and IT
Fish Legal has the support of many highprofile figures such as actor Jim Murray, seen here with the organisation’s Head of Practice Penny Gane
For the year ended 31st March 2024, Fish Legal closed on a loss of £103k, which when compared to last year’s surplus of £350k, acutely demonstrates the swings in bottom line results, most of which is nothing to do with the year being reported on.
In 22/23 Fish Legal received £385k of recovered costs back on cases won and closed, much of which was incurred in prior years. The year 23/24 saw this recovery value diminish to £43k, whilst the expenditure on expert and counsel fees stepped up to £146k, compared to £97k last year. The swings are part and parcel of the nature of what Fish Legal does, actually demonstrating traction and successes, but make comparing the years harder.
To help readers better grasp the numbers, if these recovered costs and incurred expert costs are stripped out, Fish Legal’s day to day legal operations broke even in 23/24, showing good management by Penny Gane and team. However, this is not the full story, as some of the wage and travel costs of the team could be recovered in future years when cases close, so reporting on P&L in a single, discrete year is always going to be a little misleading.
Sources of income for Fish Legal are closely tied to Angling Trust, with a share of membership income directly channelled to fund the legal work of Fish Legal’s team of solicitors. This income was up 4% on 22/23, which is encouraging and mainly seeing growth from clubs and fisheries. Donations and legacies is another importance source
of income, but this will swing year to year, with around half the level of funds received in 23/24 compared to the year before.
Expenses in Fish Legal are mainly the people and the tools they use. Gross pay was up 8% compared to 22/23, being the full year impact of strengthening the team in 22/23, pay reviews and high underlying cost inflation, which drove overhead costs up by 4%.
Reserves remain healthy, which is crucial to underpin the cases Fish Legal bring to court; we have to prove sufficient financial resources to fight, and with net assets at just over £1m, plus the managed investment fund in ACA Trustee Co Ltd backing this up, the immediate future is secure.
The systems and process changes introduced into Angling Trust have also been rolled into Fish Legal, so new accounting systems, new ways of claiming expenses and faster closing/ better management reporting save Penny and the team time and give good financial insights. We will continue to business partner with the team to further drive marginal gains and enhance the digital experience for members and potential donors.
Angling Trust & Fish Legal AGMs
The 2024 AGMs for Angling Trust and Fish Legal will once again take the format of an online virtual meeting. A date has still to be confirmed but it will be a weekday starting at 6pm.
Following the formal business there will be a short review of the work of the Angling Trust and Fish Legal since the last meetings.
An invitation to attend this year’s events will be emailed to all Individual, Club and Fishery members very soon. This invite will also include links to our online voting system, so if even if you are unable to make the meeting you can still cast your vote.
As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment and sustainability, there will be no paper ballots issued, and any individual member, club or organisation representative wishing to vote on the resolutions put forward will need to do so via these links.
Please look out for the invitation email but if you have any queries about the event or the voting process before then, please contact.
We are the beginner, novice, weekender, specialist, match winner and syndicate member. We too, know how it feels to GO FISHING – wherever the beach, lake, canal, or river, whatever the species, or ability, you visit the tackle shop, set the alarm, enjoy the journey along the way and dream big.
Avid Carp has become a widely known and respected Carp fishing tackle brand. Avid’s comprehensive product range caters for several different fishing styles and abilities, and also appeals to anglers on every budget. The brand has several flagship products, from their incredibly comfy Benchmark beds and systems, and the impressive HQ Dual Layer shelters to their recognisable camo-flecked Outline End Tackle.
DFDS have been voted the world’s leading ferry operator for 12 years in a row, so you know you are in safe hands. Whether you are looking to book travel for your fishing trip, holidays for the family or superb mini cruises, our DFDS partnership gives you access to Europe in comfort and style. Generously partnering with us to provide travel for our England teams, DFDS have also agreed to offer exclusive discounts to Angling Trust individual members.
Not a day goes by without tens of thousands of anglers across the globe going fishing armed with a variety of products from the Fox International portfolio. With the Fox, Matrix, Predator and Fox Rage brands covering disciplines such as carp, match, coarse, traditional predator and modern lure fishing, Fox International is firmly established as one of the leading tackle manufacturers in Europe.
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Northern Powergrid serve 8 million customers across the Northeast, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire, and joined forces with the Angling Trust to help educate anglers on safety around powerlines. Their ‘Look Up It’s Live!’ encourages anglers to look up before they hook up when fishing near overhead power lines, cables and poles.
Orvis support the Angling Trust’s Anglers Against Pollution campaign to protect our rivers, lakes and seas. At their core, Orvis are a fly-fishing and game-shooting brand, inspired by nature, driven by curiosity, and fulfilled by adventure. As well as being the world leader in fly fishing equipment, Orvis also provide instruction, day rod letting, guides, and fly fishing schools in the UK.
Our Trade Associate and Trade Supporter members provide invaluable support for our work to protect, promote and develop fishing. We would like to thank them for their continued commitment to angling and the Angling Trust.
Aimed at the serious match angler, Preston Innovations offer a wide range of quality products that suit many different styles of fishing. From the casual angler right through to professional match winners, Preston Innovations have something for every angler.
Shakespeare are exclusive tackle partners for the Angling Trust’s Get Fishing campaign helping to get more people into fishing more often. Since 1897, Shakespeare has been the leader in quality, affordable fishing tackle, the inspiration coming from 125 years of passion and experience. From Ugly Stik to Catch More Fish kits, Shakespeare offers something for the whole family and all levels of experience.
Shimano is a Japanese multinational manufacturer of fishing tackle, cycling components and rowing equipment with a mission to promote health and happiness through the enjoyment of nature and the world around us. This includes the protection of marine and freshwater fisheries, waterways and the countryside.
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The Angling Trust would also like to acknowledge the support of the following:
C.C. Moore
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