The Fisheries & Angling Conservation Trust (FACT), the national umbrella organisation for fisheries conservation and angling, welcomes and endorses the Environment Agency’s Angling in 2015 plan to bring 200,000 more people into angling over the next 10 years.
Members of FACT are already doing a great deal of work to promote angling, enable more people to give fishing a go, and improve and protect the environment on which the sport depends. FACT will play a significant role in delivering this EA strategy.
National Fishing Week is the largest annual recruitment initiative, is organised by the Angling Trades Association (ATA) – a FACT member – in conjunction with the Environment Agency, SportsMatch and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Hundreds of special events are held each year during the 10-day period at the end of August to celebrate angling and to introduce thousands of would-be anglers to the sport. National Fishing Week draws on active support and involvement by the national angling bodies, angling clubs, fisheries and accredited coaches throughout the UK.
As an illustration of the co-operative effort between organisations, the Professional Coarse Fisheries Association – a FACT member – has teamed up with the PAA and National Fishing Week to offer free taster sessions on coarse fisheries during Witsun week.
Many member waters of Association of Stillwater Game Fishery Managers – a FACT member – provide low cost fly-fishing lessons for beginners at their trout fisheries and many have a ‘kids go free’ policy where juniors fish free by sharing the fishing permit and the catch of the adult accompanying them.
Member groups of Specialist Anglers Alliance – a FACT member – such as the Carp Society and the Pike Anglers Club run junior events each year in many locations to encourage young anglers and show them both how to catch large fish and then handle them safely on the bank.
The Joint Angling Development Board (JADB), whose members are affiliated to FACT, has been leading the move to develop a nationwide network of fully-trained, accredited angling coaches. This initiative has been augmented by the training and recruitment of more trained coaches by the Professional Anglers Association (PAA), which works closely with the JADB.
The Joint Angling Development Board (JADB) are committed through their contract with Sport England to increase participation by 80,000 over the next 4 years and are involved with a number of projects that will have a positive impact on participation, increasing diversity and improving information.
The development of the coach education scheme is under continuous development and by September this year a new Level One will be launched to provide much needed coaches at entry level.
The JADB can now accredit clubs through the Sport England Clubmark scheme, which will improve the profile and capacity of angling clubs to deliver to schools, Local Authorities, County Sports Partnerships, Local Education Authorities and the youth services.
In partnership with the EA the JADB have commissioned a promotional pack that will improve information on angling for Local Education Authorities, schools, Regional Sports Boards, County Sports Partnerships, youth services, School Sports Partnerships, Police Authorities, Local Authorities, Health Authorities to get over the message, “What Angling Can Doâ€.
A key condition of the grant to the JADB is to meet Preliminary Level of Equity Standards in order to widen the appeal of angling amongst under represented groups.
The JADB have commissioned a firm of consultants to look at an internet mapping service that will provide information on where to fish, linking clubs, coaches and the tackle trade on one site.
Anglers directly fund over £16 million in direct environmental improvement works and contribute over £3 billion to the UK economy. Anglers are usually the first to report pollution incidents to the Environment Agency and often follow up with common law actions to double the impact of the EA’s criminal prosecutions.
FACT encourages all angling bodies, local clubs and commercial fisheries to play a part in angling’s growth and popularity including improving angling’s accessibility to families, people of all backgrounds, genders and races and people with disabilities.
FACT Chairman, Jim Glasspool, comments:
“This strategy will help bring together the work that angling organisations are already doing to encourage people to get into angling, and increase public awareness and support for action on the key issues affecting aquatic habitats. Anglers have a long and unrivalled record as guardians of the water environment, and we must continue to seek new partners to help us with this vital work.â€
