Hockley Angling Club

Photos showing refurbished disabled peg Robin has built on the Left Lake

IMPORTANT NEWS

We are very pleased to be able to let you know that the Government have announced that Match and Night Fishing can resume on 29th March 2021

Received from The Angling Trust :

• Fishing will remain permitted as outdoor recreation or exercise for up to 6 people, or in a larger group if everyone present is from the same two households. A ‘household’ can include the support bubble linked to that household [if eligible].
• Outdoor recreational activities and exercise may take place at night so you may fish into or through the night. There are no time limits on outdoor recreation. However, you may not go on holiday to go fishing or use fishing as a pretext for a camping trip as overnight stays for these purposes remain prohibited until April 12th (Step 2)
• Match fishing will be enabled as an organised outdoor sport from March 29th. Organised outdoor sports will not be subject to the gatherings limits, but should be compliant with guidance issued by national governing bodies to ensure appropriate steps, including risk assessments, are taken to make it Covid secure in line with the law. At this stage, these gatherings must only include participants – not spectators.
• Private boat fishing under the Rule of 6 and charter boats operating in accordance with Covid precautions should now both be allowed. However, where fishing takes place on a partially enclosed boat (eg with a cabin or lounge area) with the exception of the skipper, those outside the household support bubble must not go indoors (except for access to/use of the toilet).
• The statutory stay at home restriction will be lifted but the guidance will encourage you to minimise travel outside of your local area. This means avoiding making unnecessary journeys, combining trips and avoiding travel at peak times where possible. People should avoid travelling further than is reasonably necessary to take part in, or during, their activity.
• Tackle shops and other ‘non-essential retail’ can fully open at Step 2 (April 12th) but can continue to offer click/call and collect until this point. Fisheries offering self-contained accommodation such as campsites and holiday lets, where indoor facilities are not shared with other households, can also reopen at this time.
• Throughout, anglers must also ensure they are in possession of a valid fishing licence, adhere to fisheries bylaws including the close season (March 15 to June 15 for coarse fishing on rivers) and have permission of the fishery owner.

IMPORTANT NEWS FLASH

FISHING TO BE ALLOWED DURING ENGLAND'S NATIONAL LOCKDOWN

(Would all HAC members please use common sense if coming fishing)

INFORMATION TAKEN FROM ANGLING TRUST WEBSITE 

07 January 2021

The Government have now formally responded to the representations made by the Angling Trust. We have promoted the huge benefits of fishing on individual health and wellbeing and have been able to present a case to which the Government have listened. On this basis I am pleased to announce that fishing will be permitted during the third national lockdown in England.

The Head of Sports Participation at DCMS confirmed the following:

“fishing is allowed as exercise so long as participants adhere to the rules on staying local, gathering limits, social distancing and limiting the time spent outdoors”

This has also been confirmed by DEFRA:

“Cabinet Office have now officially confirmed that angling / fishing (incl. sea fishing off private boats, water sports) can be considered exercise and are hence permitted.”

We have worked extremely hard to reach this position and we as anglers have a duty to abide by the strict conditions under which fishing is once again permitted. With infection rates and death tolls

rising we must stick to the Government’s rules and ensure that angling remains part of the solution and does not cause problems.

Please bear in mind these key points which will be reflected in the new Angling Trust guidelines which we will publish shortly:

This is a strictly limited resumption of LOCAL fishing and very different to how we have been allowed to operate since May.

We are in a National Lockdown and this must be respected. The law requires a ‘reasonable excuse’ to leave your home or penalties will apply.

The Government has recognised that fishing can be seen as exercise, which is expressly permitted under the lockdown rules, although outdoor recreation is not.

Organised sporting gatherings are prohibited so no match fishing.

The exercise is limited to once a day so no overnight fishing whatsoever.

To remain within the law you should follow the Government’s guidance, and only fish locally within the district where you live. If you have no local fishing available then you will have to take your daily exercise in other ways.

We are once again able to enjoy the sport we love at a time when many others cannot and we must ensure that every angler adheres to the rules.

I would ask all anglers who are not members to join the Angling Trust and give us your support. We have worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome and that is only possible thanks to the support of our new and existing members. I would ask all anglers who value their ability to go fishing to make the same commitment as your fellow anglers have and join the Angling Trust. We are stronger together!

Join the Angling Trust today

Stay safe and very best fishes

Jamie Cook

Chief Executive, Angling Trust

TAKEN FROM ANGLING TRUST WEBSITE

Covid-19 Lockdown Newsflash  06 January 2021

Following yesterday’s written communication from the Cabinet Office that fishing is to be prohibited throughout the third national lockdown period we contacted supportive MPs and highlighted the problems with this decision and the logic behind it, with a view to securing a safe return to angling as soon as possible. Late this evening I was informed by DCMS officials that the Government are again reconsidering their position.

It would appear that the definition of “exercise” may well be wider than the previous ‘running, walking, cycling’ and we have insisted that the Government recognise both the physical health and mental wellbeing benefits of angling in any decision they make. We strongly believe that exercise should not simply be limited to high impact, aerobic activities which the first lockdown proved led to many in society being left without the means to maintain an active lifestyle. The Government has heard our case loud and clear and it was repeated with some force by MP’s in this afternoons commons debate. We hope that they will now acknowledge, as they have before, that fishing is part of the solution and not part of the problem.

We are expecting to see the publication of revised guidance and supporting FAQ’s from the Government tomorrow. We will immediately share these with the angling community the moment they become available. We are working as hard as we can for our members and the sport we all love and when we know more so will you.

This is incredibly frustrating for all of us. Anglers have acted with huge credit throughout this period and I thank you for your support.

Please stay safe

Jamie

Jamie Cook

CEO – Angling Trust

TIER 5 UPDATE FROM ANGLING TRUST 5 JANUARY 2021

Whilst the regulations have not yet been published we have been informed this evening by the Cabinet Office that the Government have taken the decision that fishing in England will not be permitted during this national lockdown period. Whilst this is disappointing news I would ask anglers, fisheries and clubs to respect these rules and the reason they have been put in place; to help save lives and support the NHS.

Individuals should not go fishing from midnight tonight (5th January) and clubs and fisheries should close their waters to anglers. We will be publishing more detailed guidance on specific areas like bailiffing and fishery maintenance once the Government regulations have been published.

Over the past few weeks we have been in communication with the Government at the highest possible level. We have presented a strong case on how fishing could continue safely during the third national lockdown. We have explained that fishing benefits physical health and mental wellbeing and that it is regularly the only form of activity individuals undertake. You can read our representations to Cabinet Ministers on Angling Trust website.

My team and I have consistently presented the arguments ahead of the changing government guidelines, which have allowed fishing to remain permitted continuously since the first national lockdown was lifted in May. We have been successful when other sports have not as all anglers will know.

However, with 60,000 new infections announced today, the Government have taken the decision that leaving home for recreation or leisure, including all forms of recreational fishing, should be prohibited in England during this third national lockdown period.

I thank you for your support and for being a credit to our sport. As members, you can rest assured that the Angling Trust will continue to represent our sport at the highest level and will present proposals for the resumption of angling when it is safe and sensible to do so. We will come through this period of national crisis. We will fish again, but until then, please, stay safe.

Jamie Cook
CEO, Angling Trust

TIER 5 INFORMATION TEXT FROM ANGLING TRUST 4 JANUARY 2021

We need to await tomorrow’s publication of the regulations necessary to enact this evenings announcement on a national lockdown by the Prime Minister. We will take professional advice and carefully review what they mean for angling and then publish guidelines for anglers, clubs, fisheries and all associated with our industry. We have spent today lobbying Cabinet members for outdoor recreational activities to remain specifically permitted and are disappointed that this may not be the case. We will publish an update here and on the Covid section of our website.

We will be extremely busy working on this and request that at this stage you do not contact with individual questions. Thank you.

FISHING IN TEIR 4 : 19 DECEMBER 2020

Government Guidance here : copied from Angling Trust Website

IMPACT ON ANGLING IN TIER 4

• Outdoor recreation remains permissible so fishing locally with one other is fine
• We are effectively back to lockdown in Tier 4 so no gatherings or matches (as in the last lockdown)
• Travelling to fish should be local and not involve entering or leaving or passing through a Tier 4 area
• Tackle shops and other stores can still remain open and operate click and collect
• Outdoor facilities such as fisheries can remain open
• No time limits have been placed on outdoor recreation so night fishing remains permissible, as previously confirmed in writing by both DEFRA and DCMS, until we are advised otherwise
• Voluntary or paid fishery management work, including bailiffing and maintenance work, remains a legitimate reason to leave home
• The rules for Tiers 1, 2 & 3 remain in place

FISHING AT HOCKLEY ANGLING CLUB DURING NOVEMBER LOCKDOWN

The information below is taken directly from the Angling Trust website 5 November 2020:

“Angling is deemed a permissible form of ‘outdoor recreation’, and a lawful reason to leave home. It can take place, without time limits, within the provision allowing people “to visit a public outdoor space for the purposes of open air recreation”.

The regulations are clear and you can only leave home to fish with members of your own household, your support bubble or with one other individual. The Rule of Six is now effectively the Rule of Two for most of us. The tightening of the rules on ‘gatherings’ means that match fishing or any other organised fishing event is prohibited by law during lockdown. However, competitive fishing will be able to resume once there is a return to the three tier system of restrictions

Fisheries are not on the published list of businesses that the government has ordered to close and there is no reason that they should do so providing that they operate in accordance with the rules “

If you have any queries please get in touch