Angling Trust News Jan 2024

[Steve S]

Angling Trust submits response to Devon & Severn IFCA over proposed netting of Salcombe Estuary     The Angling Trust has worked extensively over the last two months to provide a vigorous and collaborative rebuttal to the proposals put forward for a net fishery within Salcombe Estuary in South Devon. We would like to thank the National Mullet Club, Bass Anglers Sportfishing Society, our Wyvern Region and the Angling Trades Association for their support. The Angling Trust has also engaged with other recreational water users, the Duchy of Cornwall, the local harbour authority, Natural England, Devonshire Wildlife Trust and many more stakeholders to lead one of the highest engaged consultations we have witnessed.     Salcombe netting: next steps   The vote by the bylaws and permits sub-committee of the Devon and Severn IFCA on whether to approve the proposals to net Salcombe Estuary will be held from midday on the 22nd February at Exeter Racecourse. Whilst the public are allowed to attend these meetings to observe, there is limited capacity. Please click the link below to read our full announcement in this regard, including details on raising questions for this meeting.       WORKSHOP   Pollack FISP Workshop – 14 Feb. Register now     Pollack FISP focuses on improving knowledge of the pollack stock off the south west of England, in collaboration with interested stakeholders. The project is a Fisheries Industry Science Partnership funded by Defra. During the morning session, you will hear updates about the project’s progress on pollack tagging and fisheries data collection. In the afternoon session, participants will get the chance to share their views on pollack through an interactive workshop. The information we receive from participants will be fed back to Defra. Throughout the day there will be opportunities to ask questions about the project and speak with the team.  Spaces are limited for this workshop. Please register your interest to attend no later than Friday, 26 January. Lunch will be provided. You can register here.   If you are unable to attend in-person, but would like to learn more about the project, presentations from the project team will take place from 10am-12am and can be attended virtually. Please register for online attendance here. The afternoon discussion sessions cannot be attended virtually and will not be recorded. However, if you are interested in providing your views about pollack populations and management yet are unable to attend the workshop, please contact Simon Thomas at simon.f.thomas@york.ac.uk.    If you have any questions, please get in touch with Hannah Rudd at hannah.rudd@anglingtrust.net.   Find out more   Pollack FISP is led by the University of Plymouth, in partnership with the Angling Trust, the Professional Boatman’s Association and the University of York. The project team includes Dr Emma Sheehan and Dr Thomas Stamp from the University of Plymouth, Hannah Rudd from the Angling Trust, Dave Uren from Mirage Charters, and Dr Bryce Stewart and Dr Simon Thomas from the University of York. More information about the Pollack FISP is available on the University of Plymouth and Angling Trust websites. More information about the receiver network can be found on the FISH INTEL webpage. You can watch Dr Simon Thomas and Dr Thomas Stamp present their early results in the Angling Trust’s Virtual Forum.   Pollack FISP data has not contributed to the latest ICES assessment on pollack that led to the commercial bycatch-only fishery in 2024.     PLYMOUTH ACCESS   Sutton Harbour: Clarification on access to fish     The LRF community, via ‘The Big LERF’, brought to our attention a number of occasions where individuals have been asked to ‘move on’ when fishing Sutton Harbour in Plymouth. Preliminary advice has been shared back with this community who we will work with to develop codes of conduct to assist with maintaining access. As it stands, the harbour can set its own terms, which strictly speaking do prohibit fishing. It is not typically enforced to the strictest degree, with anglers sometimes just asked to move to a different part of the harbour where they are less likely to come into conflict with other water users. We continue to engage with the harbour master and the South West Ports Association to deal with a growing issue of restricted access to ports, harbours and marinas for the LRF community and other anglers. We will publish a full story on this in due course once clearer guidance is reached from the harbour authorities.     CATCH UP   Angling Trust visit Northumberland IFCA     The Angling Trust’s Policy & Advocacy Manager, Hannah Rudd, and North East Regional Enforcement Support Manager, Kevin Woodcock, were in Blyth this month with Angling Trust volunteers Dave and Carol Sanderson to meet some of the team at Northumberland IFCA and chat all things sea fishing. It was great to hear about their work with local sea anglers and more on how sea angling brings communities together in Northumberland. Together, we’re looking forward to working more closely to promote and develop recreational sea angling in Northumberland.     CATCHWISE     Volunteer reveals 'fishing is a great tonic for many'     Catchwise is the biggest sea angling survey in over a decade and aims to collect important insights into recreational sea fishing – both along the shore and at sea. Its aim is to record data across a 12-month period to understand who takes part in angling, how often they do it, what sorts of fishing they do, what they catch and how valuable sea angling is to local communities. Jonathan Burroughs is a Catchwise Volunteer in East Anglia. This is what he has said about his experience so far. "I was motivated to sign up to do this work because I think climate change is affecting the marine environment around our coastline and we need to better understand these effects.   "As I've got stuck into interviewing fishermen (no women found as yet) I guess what's surprised me most is how many people are pursuing angling for their mental health, almost regardless of what they catch. Whether it's loneliness, old age, serious illness or just a need to get out into the open air and natural environment away from life's troubles, it seems to be providing a great tonic for a great number."   Catchwise is still recruiting volunteers to help with this important project. If you want to be involved, please click the link below:       FISHING IN WALES   Blog: Winter beach fishing in Wales     Many anglers associate beach fishing with the warmer months of the year, which is hardly surprising as there is no finer way of spending a hot summer day standing waist deep amidst a lively surf. However, the fishing you can experience during the cold months of the year on many Welsh beaches can be very good, too. In this Fishing In Wales blog, Dave Lewis offers tackle and bait advice to get the most out of beach fishing in winter.       GET FISHING   Blog: How sea angling is supporting healthier lives     Amelia Henderson at Bedlington Station Sea Angling Club has been organising a women’s boat fishing group and supporting local military veterans and their families with angling activities. It's an incredible example of how one person can be the catalyst for so many people to benefit from life-improving experiences simply by spending time fishing.   In an inspiring Get Fishing blog, Amelia tells how the Together Fund, administered by the Angling Trust and Sport England, was a great opportunity to support more participation, and share the social, economic and health benefits of sea angling.       SPECIES HUNT     Little change in leader boards for December   December’s submissions have been steadier this month with just over 60 species submitted, resulting in little change at the top of the leader boards.   Elite League: The top five anglers' scores remain unchanged.   Senior League: Ben Price and Luke Woodford still retain 1st and 2nd place. Plymouth angler Alan Mundy's two submissions this month have seen him creep from 4th to 3rd place, pushing Stuart Jones into 4th place. Darren Pearson remains in 5th place.   Junior League: The top five anglers' scores at the top remain static apart from Mark Banham who has risen from 4th to 3rd place with his two species submitted this month.         Congratulations to Simon Lancastle for winning the December Specimen Award with his 63cms Thornback Ray.         COMPETITIONS   Angling Trust takes over Penn Sea League     The Angling Trust Competitions team has agreed a deal to take over the running of one of sea fishing’s most prestigious events – the Penn Sea League. Established in 1999 by Sea Angler magazine, the competition is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024 and remains the ‘must-win’ competition for thousands of shore-based match anglers. Points are awarded based on the number of anglers fishing an open match registered for the Penn Sea League and go to the top three, five, or 10 anglers, zone winners and heaviest fish in registered open events held throughout the UK. League scoring runs from January to December each year and the top 45 best point scorers from the season are invited to go head-to-head in a one-off grand final match hosted the following season.       FUNDRAISERS   Win a day's shark fishing with John Locker in our Great Fishing Prize Draw 2024     How do you fancy the chance to spend a day fishing for shark with John Locker, the star of Youtube sensation ‘The Fish Locker’. Enter our Great Fishing Prize Draw and you could be one of three lucky winners to go on a shark fishing expedition with John aboard Anglo Dawn.   Sailing out of Falmouth, you will be able to tap into John’s extensive knowledge and experience of these awesome fish and to spend the day with one of the most engaging characters in our sport. The Great Fishing Prize Draw also offers the chance to fish with some of the biggest names in coarse and game fishing - click the button below for more details.       MEMBER OFFERS   Get 20% off The Song of the Solitary Bass Angler   Angling Trust members can get 20% off all Merlin Unwin fishing and countryside books - including this fabulous read by James Batty, The Song of the Solitary Bass Angler. Batty seldom ventures further than 20 miles from his Cornish home, fishing from the rocks and beaches in a handful of places. Generous with his knowledge and full of fresh ideas, Batty catches bass with lures, flies and bait. It’s a myth, he says, that you need expensive gear – he beaches plenty of big bass yet is a tackle skinflint.   Click here for more details