Get Fishing Awards were at Bristol Festival of Nature 2025 for ‘All Things Water’ including family fishing – find more events like this and learn to fish this summer

Bristol’s Festival of Nature annual event took place this year from the 7th – 15th June and the theme of the festival this year was water – ideal for families who wanted to Get Fishing!

Families joined in to celebrate the vital life-force on our planet – water – from oceans and lakes to ponds and streams and discover the importance of water spaces and all the ways we can protect precious water habitats, on a local and national scale. Nearly 50 people had a go at fishing in the Angling Trust‘s Get Fishing event at the festival and as well as achieving their Bronze Get Fishing Award they left with smiles on their faces, memories to cherish of catching their first fish and plans to go fishing again as soon as they can!

Kishore got in touch after the event finished to give us some lovely feedback – he’d been to the Get Fishing area with family and sent some of these wonderful pictures too!

“Just a quick email to say thank you again for the fantastic event in Bristol last month and for your guidance on the next steps. We’ve booked our places for the next session and are really looking forward to it, especially the chance to work towards our silver awards. Thanks again for all your help and for running such great programs. Kishore“

The festival is now a major cultural moment across the West of England and this year featured the UK’s first ever pop-up wetland in Millennium Square!

With WWT, and one of the planet’s most important ecosystems right in the heart of Bristol City we just knew fishing had to be a part!

Our Reel Education Manager Neil Wylie and Regional Angling Development Manager Dean Asplin who cover the south of England, approached the festival and ran what was a fully booked fishing session at the event – not only raising awareness of the part angling has to play in protecting waterways but also to provide an opportunity for many people to hear about how fishing is perfect for families working within a tight budget and looking for school holiday activities to keep children active, outdoors and away from their screens for a while!

Everyone attending this day and others like it get to develop new skills which include how to catch and safely return fish to the water. This particular event was just one of hundreds happening nationwide this summer that the Angling Trust help organise to get more people fishing, more often.

Funded by the Environment Agency from fishing licence income, the Get Fishing programme allows thousands of people to experience all of the social, health, wellbeing and positive effects that simply spending time fishing next to water can bring.

Newcomers to angling at the festival had a go at fishing using basic tackle provided on the day and were saw first hand how simple it is to Get Fishing!

The photos from the day are representative of our Get Fishing Award programme which handholds a newcomer angler from absolute beginner level through the Bronze, Silver and Gold Get Fishing Award stages of progressive angling skill levels and, if the participant wants to, on further to take part in the Get Fishing CAST Awards. In these more advanced sessions, you get to develop any particular area of fishing that has captured the imagination, to improve on, or even just to try as a completely new or different fishing skill!

You can Get Fishing too! There are so many locations to choose from. Events are free or low-cost and include a free fishing licence for everybody while they are fishing at the event, generously donated by the Environment Agency to encourage more people to get into the wonderful activity of angling, which brings health and wellbeing benefits, focus and fun times to so many families who take part.

Get Fishing events are a great introduction to angling because you can simply turn up and fish and don’t need to bring any of your own fishing tackle or bait – it will all be provided on the day, by the event organiser. All the Get Fishing events running from now through summer 2025 can be found in our Get Fishing event pages.

Come along to a beginner have-a-go fishing session like this, and discover why fishing is good for your body and mind, why it doesn’t matter what age or ability level you are, and how fishing is great for children to get outdoors and gain focus and concentration in nature, and away from their screens.

Bring friends and children to learn to fish, see some nature at the waterside and enjoy a wonderful experience for the whole family. It’s great to learn a new skill, re-awaken your love of the great outdoors and embrace some newfound knowledge that you can use when you come fishing again.

There will be more events like this coming up this Summer! Keep checking our Get Fishing Events diary to find out when.

The Get Fishing campaign is funded by

The Angling Trust’s Get Fishing campaign to get more people fishing more often is 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.