How was 2025 for you? For fishing as a whole, there were some huge stories, from a new British record barbel, to anglers making big wins on the bank and in the courts. The signs are encouraging and, who knows, perhaps 2026 could be a year of genuine resurgence for angling?
At Clubmate, we have been busier than ever, bringing clubs and fisheries into the digital age and supporting angling wherever possible. So what things excited us most in 2025? What were the key lessons and what would we love to see more of going forward?
Junior fishing back with a bang- but how do we sustain this?
The most important angling demographic of all, our youth, had a brilliant year in 2025. The Canal and Rivers Trust’s 2025 National Celebration of Young People and Fishing, proudly supported by Clubmate, was the biggest junior participation event in years. And as if to confirm the talent coming through, we also saw Fish’o’Mania’s youngest ever winner with Bradley Lucas.
We know ourselves that there are stacks of clubs and fisheries doing amazing work. “Give fishing a go” events are important, but the real key here is development. In other words, it’s not so much catching new anglers for a day, but how we keep them engaged for the longer term.
Very often, this starts with deeper skills, continuity and bigger goals, whether that means competitions or routes into specialist angling. Reading DAA’s “Better Fishing Academy” is an excellent example of this, allowing participants to explore different styles, such as lure, carp or stick float fishing.
Another big part of the junior picture is mainstream education, where we know that angling can have a powerful impact in engaging students across various parts of the curriculum, from PE to science. Full marks, therefore, to the likes of Fishing For Schools and Charles Jardine, with news that 2026 will see angling get its own officially recognised qualifications in schools.
Community angling vs. fishery closures!
One massive lesson for angling yet again in 2025 was the need for the sport to look beyond its collective rod tip and see the bigger picture. Whether this means community angling, mental health projects, or high profile campaigning for cleaner rivers, our sport has once again shown the potential to break stereotypes and emerge as a national force for good.
The angling community, and locals such as James Duffy (above) were key to overturning the angling ban at Wingerworth Lido.
The key here is how we choose to represent ourselves as a sport. Because angling can be almost invisible, or sit right at the heart of national and community wellbeing. And this matters on so many levels, not least with fishery bans and the very future of angling.
A point in case this very year has been Wingerworth Lido, where angling only beat a council ban thanks to successful campaigning by anglers, who were able to show the sport’s massive community benefits. It won’t be the last fight we have- but by coming together and promoting the priceless, wider value of angling, we can demand better for anglers, communities and wildlife alike.
The onward march of digital
Another ongoing and overdue change in angling is the continued evolution to online and digital life. At Clubmate, we’re proud to have helped hundreds of clubs and fisheries navigate this successfully!
Key to doing just that is to make tech less daunting, which is where smart, user friendly tools and systems come in. From ticket sales to internal communications, our whole aim has been to make life easier for those who run clubs and fisheries.
In the midst of all of this, there’s still so much to improve, and clubs that still work with photocopiers and land lines! That’s why we continue to help clubs evolve and thrive with the latest tools and friendly service. Contact us today for help with all things digital, whether it’s a new website or getting your fishery or organisation set up with Clubmate.
Could we finally be seeing some movement on the huge threat of record cormorant numbers?
Finally getting our teeth into predation?
Anglers have long bemoaned a lack of wider support on predation. Whether it is the drastic impact of cormorants, issues with otters or invasive species, it can feel like we’re fighting a losing battle.
Predation is make and break for so many fisheries, after all, which is why we need to come together more than ever. And on this note, we made some major progress in 2025. To take one huge example, it was the year that anglers finally achieved the relocation of the seals that decimated the River Nene!
Meanwhile, there is movement in the right direction on cormorants, thanks to continued evidence gathering- including European proposals on cormorants to control record breaking numbers of the birds that do untold damage to fisheries.
This is no time to let up, however, and angling has often been its own worst enemy with apathy and infighting. This is why we are calling for anglers to track non native species and to log their findings, including reports of cormorants and other migratory predators (CLICK HERE).
Growing skills and running tomorrow’s fisheries
Another welcome current trend has been the increase in fishery management skills. This is especially true for volunteers and club personnel, who want to learn how to run and improve fisheries, but often don’t come from academic or specialised backgrounds.
Giving more individuals technical skills and the confidence to manage fisheries has to be a good thing in the long run- whether that means boosting predator defences or improving the health of rivers and lakes.
For our part, this is also about giving clubs and fisheries better and easier ways to run things. From better internal communications, to navigating payments and ticketing, Clubmate has an extensive selection of webinars and other resources, along with an extensive help section along with support on hand. Keep an eye on our regular blog and online forums for further useful info and advice.
Clubmate is the go-to fishing club management software trusted by nearly 100,000 anglers and 1500+ fishing club committee members and bailiffs. We’ll help you remove unnecessary paperwork, increase revenue and take back your spare time with our simple-to-use, cloud-based system designed specifically for fishing clubs and fisheries. Book a 1-2-1 demo with one of our fishing club experts or see what people have to say about working with us.