The Environment Agency and Angling Trust Get Fishing Fund is back!

Monday 2^nd October launch date

£200k of funding will get even more people fishing, more often

Grants of up to £2,500 available to deliver events and activities to help people go fishing

Since 2019 the Environment Agency has invested over £400,000 of fishing licence income in 300 Get Fishing Funded projects nationwide, and enabled thousands more newcomers to get into fishing. This popular fund relaunches on Monday 2^nd October, with grants of up to £2,500 per organisation available via the Angling Trust who administer the Get Fishing Fund.

The Get Fishing Fund is all about supporting organisations to run events and activities that help get people into fishing. Funding can be used to purchase fishing tackle, equipment, event shelters and resources to help run events, making it as easy as possible for newcomers to get fishing!

The fund has proved incredibly popular with angling clubs, fisheries and angling coaches as well as schools, local authorities and charities. Interested organisations are recommended to review the fund guidance notes available at www.anglingtrust.net/getfishingfund, to fully understand the objectives of the fund, and are welcome to contact the Angling Trust to discuss their application and give it the best chance of being successful.

Heidi Stone, Fisheries Partnership Manager at the Environment Agency commented: ‘We are delighted to continue this initiative with the Angling Trust. All the funding comes from licence sales so today’s anglers are helping to support first timers or novices to try the sport they love. It is especially rewarding to see the joy a first catch or the shared learning experience of families or groups of friends at these professionally run events.’

Clive Copeland, Head of Participation at the Angling Trust added: “Over the past three years, we’ve seen the incredible impact the Get Fishing Fund has had to help more people get into fishing. The continued support of the Environment Agency to introduce newcomers means that even more people can discover the social, health and wellbeing benefits of fishing.”

The deadline for applications is Friday 8^th December 2023. Applicants can expect to receive an update on the status of their application by 31^st January 2024.

Notes for Applicants:

• The contact for Get Fishing Fund applicants is: [email protected]
• The fund opens on Monday 2^nd October 2023 and closes on Friday 8^th December 2023.
• Funding applications can be made on the Angling Trust website at grants.anglingtrust.net/online-application-forms or search “Get Fishing Fund”
• For more information on coaching and courses visit anglingtrust.net/get-involved/coaching. In some circumstances, we may be able to use additional licence income from the Environment Agency to provide bursaries for training new coaches

Notes for Editors:

• The contact for this Press Release is: [email protected]
• Get Fishing is the Angling Trust’s campaign to grow participation in angling. Annually, the Get Fishing campaign introduces over 30,000 people to angling at hundreds of fun, safe and friendly events funded by the Environment Agency from fishing licence income.
• You can download this post as a Word Doc here: https://anglingtrust.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GFF-Press-Release-2023-Final.docx

Quotes from previously funded projects:

Sue Galloway BEM, Northampton Nene Angling Club: “For me, this is what it’s all about, creating these opportunities for children, young people, and their parents to try fishing and hopefully incorporating this into their lives to help them maintain a healthy wellbeing.”

Ashley Bunning, SW Lakes Trust: “We have kicked off the Get Fishing events on our reservoirs. We had a fantastic time and all that attended thoroughly enjoyed it. It was great to get to see the participants who were a bit unsure at the start with what to expect from fishing, to then seeing them get full enjoyment when they caught their first fish.”

Mark Smedley, MS Angling and Education: “Children and staff attended our Get Fishing events together and have thoroughly enjoyed being out in the fresh air, socialising with each other and sharing knowledge and experiences. The Get Fishing Fund has allowed us to deliver these events where participants have learnt new skills, caught personal bests, built confidence, and have learnt to experiment with different baits and techniques.”