Family Fishing on the River Thames

Sarah, a mum of two, tells us about her family day out fishing in Reading.

We never used to go fishing because we didn't know where to get the tackle, where to go fishing or how to fish when we got there! With a little help from the experts and using this website we now know how easy and fun fishing can be for all the family.

What did you like best about it, did everything go to plan?

My children aged 5 and 7 love to be outdoors, so fishing is a great way to keep them interested; doing something practical that involves learning about nature is so important. We arranged for the eldest to get some free fishing tuition with the experts during the summer holiday by contacting our local Environment Agency office for details. They showed us how to set up a basic fishing rig, how to catch fish and how to put them back into the water safely.

The fishing tackle is quite simple and cheap - we now have short four-metre poles, which cost as little as £15 each. We also bought basic floats, non-toxic weights, a three-pound line and barbless, fish-safe hooks in sizes 16 and 18. We tend to use maggots for bait - 'a pint of red ones' are usually enough. Bread and sweetcorn are also good baits. We're not after big fish, just lots of medium sized ones like roach and perch, anything up to 1lb in weight.

Children under the age of 12 don't need a rod licence but between the age of 12 and 17 they need a junior licence which costs only £5 from any post office. Parents also need a licence if they intend to fish.

Most rivers are controlled by angling clubs, which can be joined at any local fishing tackle shop and have 'junior sections'. On this occasion we decided to fish a 'free section' of river Thames in the middle of Reading in the Kings Meadow Park. More information about free fishing sites is available on this website, or simply ask in a tackle shop. Free sections don't require club membership and are usually owned by local councils.

I picked the children up after school and arrived at the free section by 4pm. Within 10 minutes of arriving we had set up our poles with float rigs and started to fish. By regularly throwing in a few maggots near our floats we soon attracted fish which began to bite! My son caught the first one, a beautiful looking perch with green and black stripes and red fins. After an hour they both caught several fish including roach, chub, perch and bleak, all of which were safely returned to the water. All too soon it was time to pack up and go home for supper. We made sure we didn't leave any litter.

I'm really keen for my children to do things like this, which helps them appreciate wildlife, the outdoors and healthy activities. I would recommend fishing to any parent.