The new golden opportunity began on Friday 14 August and runs right through to 4 October. The initiative is part of the boosted Take A Friend Fishing campaign and has been widely praised right across the English and Welsh coarse fishing scene.
Run by the Angling Trust, Angling Trades Association and Environment Agency, the scheme allows anyone to save £6 on a normal one-day licence when they go with a current licence-holding angler.
The TAFF scheme is online only, but you just have to register yourself and your intended fishing partner’s details at the Take A Friend Fishing website. This will notify the friend who, after checking the details are correct, will activate a confirmation email that will act as the free fishing licence voucher that they can print or have on their phone.
You’ll need permission to fish where you go, which may mean buying a day ticket. Kevin Austin, EA deputy director for fisheries, said: “Angling is a great way to spend time outdoors whilst remaining a safe distance, has known well-being benefits and, what’s more, anyone can participate. The initiative invites newcomers to discover the positives around this sport for themselves.
“The success of the recent relaunch and increase in licence sales since lockdown has shown the enthusiasm that exists, and so we are extending the free one-day licence offer again, so that we can grow our angling community even more!”
Andrew Race, chairman of the ATA, warmly applauded the one-day free licence running though the rest of the summer and into early autumn.
Andrew said: “The decision by the EA to extend the TAFF initiative cannot be underestimated. It reflects the co-operative potential and commitment to angling that now exists between the major stakeholders.
“I feel privileged to be ATA chair at this exciting time, and would urge the trade as a whole to look at what we are achieving and support this initiative.”
