BLOG: Jack’s Back! What’s been happening in my East of England Region at Angling Trust – two months in, Spring into Fishing events and loads going on to help people learn how to fish

We recently welcomed Jack Culpin to the Angling Trust’s Participation Team as the Regional Angling Development Officer for the East of England In just two months, Jack has helped at and organised many Get Fishing events across the East of England and has lots more in the pipeline.

We caught up with Jack at one of his many busy events, and he gave us a quick update on how he’s getting on in his new “Dream Job”! The time was limited while Jack helped get newcomer anglers set up and ready to fish with the free use of tackle and bait that had been provided for over 50 people – families, children and friends who had arrived to try fishing – most of them for the first time!

Having a hand in organising so many and so varied a range of Get Fishing events in the last couple of months has been a real eye-opener! It has really brought home what a huge array of opportunities are available in the East of England Region that I look after in my role of Regional Officer. There’s so much going on in the counties here and I’m still discovering new fisheries and venues that run beginner events for people to come and get into fishing. It’s also reminded me how back in the day, I was so lucky to be introduced to fishing by my dad, with just a handful of fishing tackle and a few bits of bait – often whatever was going spare, or that I could scrounge off a family member!

Nowadays, it can be a daunting task to work out what you need to start fishing – even I walk into a fishing shop and get overwhelmed by the amount of tackle, bait, rods, reels and other bits and pieces of kit that we are faced with now!

At Get Fishing events and especially in the Get Fishing Award programme, we start by stripping all of this back to basics. This is much more like my own experience when I think I was quite lucky to have been successful even though I was just using very pure and uncomplicated forms of coarse fishing.

It’s actually still the case that really all you would need is just a small basic fishing rod and reel, a handful of floats, a disgorger, plummet and a few hooks and bits of end-tackle with a maybe some sweetcorn, bread or a few maggots for bait. At Get Fishing beginner-level have-a-go events it’s even simpler than that! Most events use a 3 meter “whip” type rod, with no reel and the line simply attached to the tip, often with an elasticated section to help when the fish pulls against you. There’s always someone around to help you land, net and unhook a fish, and they will also show you how to release fish back into the water to swim away safely.

It’s lots easier than most people imagine, and although there’s the constant challenge and concentration required, there’s also a very relaxing aspect to all kinds of fishing – it’s proven to help concentration, reduce stress and help people open up and talk about things – at the same time it can just be an amazingly easy and accessible way for families to get outdoors together and have fun at the weekend! It’s whatever you want it to be really – hard to explain and honestly, the best way to discover what makes us anglers tick is to set aside an hour, come to one of our Get Fishing events at the weekend or in the school holiday, and just give it a go!  What’s to lose – most of the events are free and with a free fishing licence provided on the day, it’s a cheap, quick, stress free way to spend time with the kids or your other half, or just be on your own and get some ‘me-time’.

All of our events are on the Get Fishing pages of the Angling Trust website and if you can’t find what you are looking for, drop me a line by email at jack.culpin@anglingtrust.net and I’ll get back to you ASAP! I can’t wait to hear from you and see you at one of the Get Fishing events in the East of England – just come and try fishing – what’s to lose!

Best wishes,
Jack

Jack Culpin
Regional Angling Development Officer (East of England)
jack.culpin@anglingtrust.net
07808 779470

We’re helping to organise more Get Fishing Events like this in your area too, and in fact all over the country!

Events are added to our website and social media all the time and at the moment, during our popular Spring into Fishing programme, every single day! So please check our Get Fishing events diary for new events near to you.

The Angling Trust’s Regional Angling Development Officers and
our Get Fishing campaign are funded by

Our Regional Angling Development Officers and the Get Fishing campaign to get more people fishing more often are funded by the Environment Agency from fishing licence income as part of the National Angling Strategic Services contract with the Angling Trust, and Sport England. Children under 13 do not need a licence, and licences for children aged between 13 and 16 are free but you still need to register and receive a licence before you go fishing. You can get a licence for the full year, for 8 days (ideal for holidays!) or just a day’s fishing.

NOTE: Although young children who are under 13 year old do not need a licence to fish, the person supervising them needs to have the proper fishing licence before they take hold of the fishing rod or help the child fish with it.

Get Fishing is Proudly Supported by

The Angling Trust’s ‘Get Fishing’ campaign is proudly supported by
Shakespeare, Exclusive Tackle Partner and Angling Direct, Exclusive Retail Partner
as we all work towards getting more people fishing, more often.

If there’s something that you cannot find here to help you start fishing or return to angling, please contact your local Regional Angling Development Officer – you can find the nearest one to where you want to go fishing here.