Sea Angling 2012 – a survey of recreational sea angling activity and economic value in England.

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www.gov.uk/defra
Sea Angling 2012 – a survey of recreational
sea angling activity and economic value in
England.
November 2013

Authors:
Mike Armstrong1, Adam Brown3, Jodie Hargreaves2, Kieran Hyder1, Sarah
Pilgrim-Morrison2, Max Munday4, Steven Proctor2, Annette Roberts4, Neil
Roche4, and Kevin Williamson2
In collaboration with the Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities in England5 and a
steering group comprised of policy makers, government scientists, academic scientists,
and the angling community6
1 Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, Lowestoft, UK
2 Marine Management Organisation, London, UK
3 substance, Manchester, UK
4 Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
5 Ten English IFCAs (http://www.association-ifca.org.uk)
6 The Sea Angling 2012 Steering Group
(http://www.marinemanagement.org.uk/seaangling/steering.htm)
Sea Angling 2012 was funded by Defra under contract MF1221 and the Marine
Management Organisation
© Crown copyright 2013
You may re-use this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or
medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ or write to the Information
Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or e-mail:
psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk
This document/publication is also available on our website at:
http://www.marinemanagement.org.uk/seaangling/
Any enquiries regarding this document/publication should be sent to:
mike.armstrong@cefas.co.uk

Synthesis of findings
Sea Angling 2012 was
established to find out how
many people go sea angling
in England, how much they
catch, how much is released,
and the economic and social
value of sea angling (Box 1).
This will help local and national
policy makers make balanced,
well-informed decisions on
sustainable development of all
forms of sea fishing, and help
other organisations – such as
sea angling bodies – to develop their own policies. The surveys also met UK obligations
under European law to estimate recreational catches of several species including bass
and cod. Data were collected from over 11,000 sea anglers in England through an Office
of National Statistics (ONS) household survey, face-to-face interviews with anglers by
Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCA), catch diaries and online surveys.
The surveys estimated there are 884,000 sea anglers in England, with 2% of all adults
going sea angling. These anglers make a significant contribution to the economy - in 2012,
sea anglers resident in England spent £1.23billion on the sport, equivalent to
£831million direct spend once imports and taxes had been excluded. This supported
10,400 full-time equivalent jobs and almost £360 million of gross value added (GVA).
Taking indirect and induced effects into account, sea angling supported £2.1billion of
total spending, a total of over 23,600 jobs, and almost £980 million of GVA.
Sea angling also has important social and well-being benefits including providing
relaxation, physical exercise, and a route for socialising. Anglers felt that improving
fish stocks was the most important factor that would increase participation in sea angling.
Almost 4 million days of sea angling were
recorded over the year. Shore fishing was
the most common type of sea angling –
almost 3 million angler-days compared with
1 million for private or rented boats and 0.1
million on charter boats. Anglers had most
success on charter boats, catching 10 fish
per day on average compared with around 5
from private boats and only 2 from the shore
(Box 2).
Number of angl ers &
fishing trips
Catch es from sho re &
boats
Value of sea angling
Social benefits of sea
angling
Box 1: Sea Angling 2012 programme of surveys and quantities
estimated
Steering group of angling
community, academics, & government
UK’s largest
sea angling
survey
House
Surv eys
Charter
Boat
Social
Benefits
Economic
Value
Shor e &
Priva te
Boat
1

The most common species caught, by number,
were mackerel and whiting, (Box 3). Shore
anglers released around 75% of the fish
caught, many of which were undersized, and
boat anglers released around 50% of their
fish.
The Sea Angling 2012 surveys of shore and
boat catches give the most comprehensive
estimates ever for England, and have been
carried out using rigorous statistical
protocols. Estimating total annual catch weights of species proved particularly challenging
for shore angling and private boats due to difficulties in estimating the number of days
fished from the ONS household survey, and in encountering private boats whilst landing.
Total annual catch estimates for bass and cod, as required for the EU Data Collection
Framework, are shown in the table below. The figures for shore and private boats are the
extremes of a range of estimates from several different approaches to analysing the data1.
The charter boat estimates may also have some bias if the sampled boats had different
catch rates, on average, to boats not participating in the survey. These uncertainties
should be taken into account when using the results.
Recent surveys in France indicated that recreational fishers caught and kept around 940t
of bass in the English Channel, of which 80% (750t) was by sea anglers2. This is of similar
magnitude to the Sea Angling 2012 estimates for England, given the uncertainties in the
estimates. The total annual kept catch of North Sea cod taken by recreational fishers in
Germany, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands is estimated to be around 1,200t3. The
UK commercial landings of bass in 2012 were 897t, mostly into England. The commercial
landings of cod into England from the North Sea, Channel, Celtic Sea and Irish Sea in
2012 were 1,500t.
The information and knowledge acquired in conducting this project will be valuable in
determining the design of future data collection surveys.
1 Figures in normal or bold type for shore or private boats are from the same estimation method.
2 http://www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WGCSE.aspx
3 http://www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WGRFS.aspx
2

How the Sea Angling 2012 surveys were carried out
Almost a million people go sea angling in England
each year, over a long and varied coastline, at all
times of day and year. How is it possible to estimate
how many fish all these anglers catch, or how much
they spend on the sport? Fortunately, there is a lot of
experience worldwide in doing just that, and we have
taken advice from experts in the USA, Australia and
elsewhere on how to do it.
To estimate the total catches of the angling charter
boat fleet in England, we first of all compiled a list of
vessels that was as complete as possible. We took a
random sample of vessels every month, recorded
their catches and then expanded the total catches of
the sampled vessels to all vessels in the fleet (Box 4). A different approach was needed for
shore or private boat anglers for whom there are no records. A nationwide Office of
National Statistics (ONS) survey was used to estimate the number of days fishing by all
the anglers during the year (the angling effort). Surveyors from the Inshore Fisheries and
Conservation Authorities interviewed anglers at random all round the coast during the year
to find out their daily catches (the catch per unit effort – CPUE). The total annual catch
was calculated by multiplying the total effort by the average CPUE (Box 4).
The economic value and social benefits of sea
angling were estimated within Sea Angling 2012 to
understand the importance of sea angling in
England. This shows the pattern of direct spending
by sea anglers and how this spending supports
other economic activity in England through supply
chains (Box 5). We used the ONS household
survey to estimate the total number of people who
went sea angling in 2012, then ran a well-publicised
online survey throughout 2012 to collect data on
expenditure and social benefits from a
representative sample of these anglers. Other
surveys were carried out in face-to-face interviews
with sea anglers at five case study locations and
supporting data were collected from angling
businesses.
There are a number of different survey methods available, each with advantages and
disadvantages. For this reason, Sea Angling 2012 has tried out a number of different on-
site and online methods with the aim of providing the most comprehensive data ever
collected on sea angling in England, and to find out what would be the most cost-effective
way to carry out any future surveys.
3

Detailed technical reports on each of the surveys can be found in the Technical Annex to
this report and can also be accessed at www.seaangling2012.org.uk. A brief summary of
each of the reports is given below.
Estimating the number of sea anglers and number of
trips made by sea anglers in England
We used the Opinions and Lifestyle survey, run by
the Office for National Statistics (ONS), to estimate
the number of sea anglers in England and how often
they go fishing from shore, private or charter boats,
and to collect other information about them and their
fishing patterns. Each month in 2012, 67 postal
sectors (58 from England, 3 from Wales and 6 from
Scotland) were selected at random, and 30
addresses were randomly selected from each sector
to participate. From these, 12,619 private households
provided face-to-face interviews during 2012 (Box 6).
The respondents were asked if they or other
members of the household had gone sea angling in
2012. If so, a wide range of other questions were
asked about their sea angling activity, for example
what types of angling they participated in during the
previous three months, how many days were spent
sea angling in England, where the angling mainly took place, and how many hours they
typically went fishing on a day-trip. From the responses given, it was possible to estimate
how many people went sea angling in Great Britain and in England in 2012, and to make
some inferences on their fishing effort. These estimates are needed for the calculation of
annual catches and economic value of sea angling from the other Sea Angling 2012
surveys.
Around 2.2% of the adult population of Great Britain (GB),
representing 1.08 million people, went sea angling in 2012 -
884,000 from England, 76,000 from Wales and 125,000 from
Scotland (Box 7). Shore angling was the most popular activity
followed by private boats and charter boats. The ONS survey
uses a proven, statistically-sound design. However, relatively
few sea anglers were interviewed because many live close to
the coast. Although the overall estimate of number of anglers
is robust, it is likely that finer details such as days fished are
very imprecise. As a result, the ONS survey is unlikely to be a
solution for future population surveys of effort.
Box 7: Number of anglers
England
(884,000)
Wale s
(76,000)
Scotland
(125,000)
Box 6: Number of people surveyed by
area in the population survey
4

Estimating the economic and social value of sea
angling in England
Recreational sea angling is a leisure activity that has
many social benefits including health and well-being. It
is also a major economic activity - total resident sea
angler spending in 2012 was estimated from our
surveys to be £1.23bn (split between spend categories
as shown in Box 8) equivalent to £831million direct
spend excluding imports and taxes. This directly
supported 10,400 FTE jobs and almost £360 million of
gross value added (GVA). The total economic impact
was £2.1bn of spending, supporting 23,600 FTE jobs
and almost £980 million of GVA once indirect and
induced effects were accounted for. Coastal
communities benefit when good fishing attracts
anglers. Estimates at case study sites in this research
suggest between 1,000 and 4,000 angling trips can
generate one FTE job per year in those locations.
The annual spend on sea angling varied enormously between individuals – being a very
expensive activity for some (e.g. tackle, boats, equipment) and a very low cost activity for
others. The average spend per individual in the sea angling population was estimated to
be £1,394 per year - £761 on trip-related costs and £633 on major items.
Data for estimating spend per angler were obtained from 2,512 respondents to an online
survey and from 340 face-to-face interviews at five case study locations (Weymouth, Deal,
Liverpool, Northumberland and Lowestoft) where local businesses were also surveyed.
Average angling trip expenditure varied widely between case study locations, from £36 in
Lowestoft to £167 in Weymouth where spend on accommodation and charter boat fees
was relatively high. The total annual spend in England was estimated by raising the mean
spend per angler to the total number of sea anglers in England estimated from the Office
of National Statistics Survey. All data were re-weighted using demographic and frequency-
of-angling data from the surveys to reduce bias.
In the social benefits survey, 47% of
respondents said that ‘being outdoors and
active’ was their main motivation for going sea
angling, and 55% said it was to ‘relax and get
away from things’. Sea angling contributes to
health and well-being with 69% of sea anglers
saying it is their main way of ‘experiencing nature’ and 70% saying that it is important to
their quality of life. Better fish stocks were cited most often as the factor that would
increase participation, although cost, time and family commitments were also important.
Box 9: Why do sea anglers go fishing?
5
Box 8: What do sea anglers spend their
money on?

Estimating the activities and catches of charter boats
Charter boats operate all around the UK, and are
hired out for specialised or more general angling, or
for activities such as diving or wildlife-watching.
Using the internet, magazines and local contacts,
we identified 399 charter boats in England (Box 10).
The owners of 166 vessels agreed to participate in
a survey during 2012 and 2013. Every month, 34
vessels were selected at random from across six
regions, and the skippers were asked to complete a
one-month diary documenting all activity or non-
activity, catches, and sizes of fish caught. Around
60% of the diaries were returned. Angling activity
was highest in summer. To calculate the annual
catches of all boats in each region, the non-
sampled boats were assumed to have the same
average catch rates as the sampled vessels.
The largest annual catches, including released
fish, were of cod (175 tonnes) and pollack (129
tonnes). Catches of other species are shown in
Box 11. The total retained catch weights of cod
and bass were 159 and 31 tonnes respectively.
No catches of blue, porbeagle or mako sharks
were recorded, possibly due to specialist shark
angling boats not participating or, by chance, not
being included in the random vessel draws.
Around 48% of all fish were released. Some
species, including tope, smooth hounds, dogfish
and conger eels, were almost always released.
Large and robust species are likely to have a
high post-release survival if handled with care,
but survival rates of other species are poorly
understood and depend on a range of factors.
A large proportion of vessel owners declined to take part in the study for reasons including
fears about the purpose and likely impact of the survey. Exclusion of these vessels is a
source of bias, as they may on average have different catch rates to those that did
participate. Also, there are likely to be other charter boats not identified in the initial
screening exercise. No diaries were returned for the Irish Sea, so no estimates were
possible in this region, and no estimates of catches of large pelagic sharks could be made.
6

Estimating the activities and catches of anglers fishing
from the shore and from private or rented boats
There is no list of anglers who fish from the shore or
private or rented boats, so the number of angler-days
spent on each type of angling in 2012 was estimated
from the ONS household survey, with adjustments
using data from direct interviews with anglers. We
estimated there were between 3 – 4 million days of
shore angling effort and 0.5 – 1 million days of private
and rented boat effort in 2012.
Estimating the mean catch rate of each species was a
huge challenge given the length and diversity of
coastline. The Inshore Fisheries and Conservation
Authorities (Box 12) surveyed almost 2,000 randomly-
selected shore and boat landing sites during 2012, and
2,030 shore anglers and 410 private boat anglers were
interviewed. Private boat landings were unpredictable and difficult to intercept. The
majority were encountered from July to September.
Almost all interviewed anglers were residents
of England, particularly the coastal counties
(Box 13). Total annual catches were
calculated for each type of angling by
multiplying the estimate of total annual angler-
days by the mean catch per day from the on-
site surveys. The data can support estimates
of catch for England as a whole, but are not
sufficient for estimates at smaller spatial
scales.
The main species caught, in terms of numbers of
fish, were mackerel, whiting and bass (Box 14).
The largest bass catches were recorded by
anglers fishing from private or rented boats. Shore
anglers released around 75% of the fish that they
caught. Private boat anglers had a smaller release
rate of around 50%, partly due to the larger
average size of fish, or other factors such as the
condition of fish brought up from deep water.
7

Collecting data on catches, angling activity and
opinions through an online survey
An online survey was run throughout 2012 to seek
information on sea angling activity, catches and
opinions. Immediately after each quarter of the year, a
publicity campaign invited anglers to complete the
survey, recalling catches and activity for that quarter.
The survey attracted 227 respondents, far fewer than in
the online survey of economic value, suggesting sea
anglers were less willing to report catches than the
amount they spend. This may be due to the complexity
of the survey or concerns about use of the data.
Occasional or less successful anglers may also be less
likely to complete the survey.
Respondents were self-selecting and unlikely to be representative of all sea anglers. On
average they were more avid and successful anglers than those interviewed in the other
more statistically designed Sea Angling 2012 surveys, reporting higher catch rates, more
days fished, and higher membership of clubs and national angling bodies. The sample was
too small to be divided up and re-weighted to have the same demographic and avidity
composition as respondents to the Office of National Statistics household survey, as was
done with the much larger sample from the online economic survey.
Information on trends is likely to be less affected by
the non-representative nature of the sample of
anglers. Anglers felt that fish numbers and size had
declined over the past five years, and to a greater
extent over the last 20-30 years (Box 15).
The species composition of fish catches in the online
survey was similar to the combined catches for the
Sea Angling 2012 charter boat and shore and private
boat surveys (Box 16). The online survey mostly
showed similar patterns of release rates to the other
surveys, for different species and types of angling.
Any future use of online surveys to estimate catches
would depend on finding ways to greatly increase the
response rate across the population of anglers, as
well as having a better targeted nationwide
household survey to re-weight the online results.
8

Estimates of bass catches and releases
Bass is a premier angling species in Europe, and
there are requirements under the EU Data Collection
Framework regulation to estimate recreational
catches in specified sea areas. This is to ensure that
the stocks can be managed sustainably, based on a
more complete understanding of fishery catches. A
focus of Sea Angling 2012 was to provide estimates
of total annual sea angling catches of bass in
England, separately for kept and released fish. Shore
anglers released around 80% of bass they caught. The release rates were lower for
private boats (around 60%) and charter boats (around 40%) mainly due to the larger sizes
of fish caught. Released fish make up a much smaller fraction of catch weight.
Estimating total
catches around
England’s long and
diverse coastline was
a huge challenge.
Despite the statistical
rigour of the surveys,
it proved difficult to
obtain an accurate picture of the total number of days fished by shore and private boat
anglers. A range of methods of estimating seasonal and annual shore and private boat
effort was used to calculate annual catches. The figures for shore and private boats in Box
17 are the extremes of the range of estimates from these different methods. The charter
boat estimates may also have some bias if the sampled boats had different catch rates, on
average, to boats not participating in the survey. Each of these is a point estimate that also
has an associated random sampling error. These uncertainties should be taken into
account when using the results.
The sea angling catch estimates are comparable
with the results of recreational fisheries surveys
in other countries (Box 18)4. The estimate for
France is for the English Channel only, and
around 80% of the catch was by sea anglers.
The recreational catches in each country are
consistently around a third of the commercial
fishery landings. There will be additional angling
catches in Wales. The UK commercial landings
of 897t were mostly into England.
4 http://www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WGCSE.aspx
9

Estimates of cod catches and releases
Cod occur all round England, and are commonly targeted by shore anglers in autumn and
winter, and by boat anglers at all times of year. Two pieces of fisheries legislation in the
EU require Member States to estimate recreational catches of cod: the EU Data Collection
Framework requires estimates for all types of recreational fishing in the North Sea and
eastern Channel, and the Control Regulation requires estimates for species subject to an
EU recovery plan, which has included cod in all areas, but applies only to registered
charter vessels.
Sea Angling 2012 surveys showed that shore anglers released around 60% of the cod
they caught. The release rates were lower for private boats (around 30%) and charter
boats (around 20%) mainly due to the larger sizes of fish caught. Released fish make up a
much smaller fraction of catch weight due to their lower individual weight.
As for bass, a range
of different methods
of estimating
seasonal and annual
shore and private
boat effort was used
to calculate annual
catches. The figures
for shore and private boats in Box 19 are the extremes of the range of estimates from
these different methods. The charter boat estimates may also have some bias if the
sampled boats had different catch rates, on average, to boats not participating in the
survey. Each of these is a point estimate that also has an associated random sampling
error. These uncertainties should be taken into account when using the results.
Several European countries have carried
out recreational fishery surveys of cod5.
Estimates for the North Sea, Skagerrak
and eastern Channel are shown in Box 20.
The results for England as a whole are not
out of line with other countries given the
relative population sizes and lengths of the
coastline.
The commercial landings of cod into
England from the North Sea, Channel,
Celtic Sea and Irish Sea in 2012 were
1,500t.
5 http://www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WGRFS.aspx
10

Collecting data on sea angling from visitors to the Isles
of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly were not included in the Sea Angling 2012 shore and private boat
survey, and a separate small survey was carried out during summer 2012 to find out more
about the role of sea angling in the activities of tourists to the Isles, how much they spent
on sea angling related items, and what species where caught from the shore and from
boats. A short questionnaire was developed by Cefas in collaboration with staff of the Isles
of Scilly Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA), and circulated around
hotels, guest houses, and camp sites (Box 21). Completed questionnaires were returned
to the IFCA and compiled into a spreadsheet for analysis. This survey was intended to
help improve understanding of sea angling tourism, and not to make any estimates of total
catches or expenditure.
Only a small
proportion of people
who went sea
angling had gone
specifically to the
Isles of Scilly for
that purpose, and
for most it was an
incidental pastime
which attracted only
a relatively small
expenditure on
items directly
related to sea angling such as bait, tackle or boat fees. Most fish caught were pollack,
mackerel and wrasse. Release rates of around 60% on average were in the range of
values recorded for shore and boat angling on mainland England. The parties associated
with each primary respondent had on average caught around five fish per day, for all
species combined.
Involving anglers and other stakeholders in the project
From the start of this project, we wanted to ensure that the views and knowledge of
anglers, angling bodies, policy makers, local authorities (IFCAs), survey experts and other
angling stakeholders from business and the media were taken into account. This is
essential so that the surveys are carried out to a high standard, and that the results are
transparent and credible. At the start of the project, a steering group was set up that
included a broad range of these stakeholders. They provided advice on survey methods
and communications, helped develop credibility and trust, ensured that the data are of use
to angling organisations to develop their own policies, and provided support in many other
aspects of the project.
11

The experience of the steering group
was important in shaping the project
and many changes were made to the
surveys as a result of steering group
discussions. For example, the
economic survey was extended to
include social benefits on the advice of
the steering group, and significant
changes to both survey design and
analyses were also made. The angling
community know far more about
anglers and angling than scientists,
and scientists know more about
scientific methods than the angling community. Working together led to the experience and
knowledge of all parties being incorporated and enhanced the quality of the data leading to
greater utility for scientists and the angling community alike. We would like to thank those
members of the steering group for their significant contributions throughout the project and
others that contributed through the steering group (a list of steering group members and
their associated organisations is on the back page of this report).
Significant effort was also made to engage with anglers to ensure that they were informed
about the project. Since the start of the Sea Angling 2012 surveys, 20,000 flyers were
distributed by the IFCAs to local tackle shops and at fishing shows to publicise the survey
to sea anglers (Box 22). Articles were written in the angling press, the Defra “Fishing
Focus” newsletter, and a radio interview was given.
A website was set up containing information about Sea Angling 2012
(http://www.seaangling2012.org.uk – Box 23) that also linked to the online catch and
economic surveys. A number of press releases were made to publicise the surveys, and
were sent to many angling organisations, internet fora and other media. E-mail shots were
also made to anglers who agreed to receive more information following the National
Angling Survey. This publicity
worked well as the Sea Angling
2012 website was the twelfth hit
on a Google search for ‘sea
angling’ and top hit on a search
for ‘sea angling project’ (figures
correct on 25 October 2012
from http://www.google.co.uk).
The impact of this publicity was
demonstrated in the almost
3,000 anglers that responded to
online surveys and the low
refusal rates to complete face-
to-face surveys.
Box 23: Sea Angling 2012 website
12

Technical Annexes: Survey Reports
Annex 1: A household survey of recreational sea angling.
Annex 1_ONS
SA2012 Report.pdf
Annex 2: The Economic and Social Value of Recreational Sea Angling in England
Annex 2_Economic +
Social SA2012 Report
Annex 3: A survey of charter boat sea angling catches in England
Annex 3_Charter
Boat SA2012 Report.p
Annex 4: An on-site survey of recreational sea angling catches from the shore and from
private and rental boats in England in 2012
Annex 4_Shore +
Private Boat SA2012 R
Annex 5: An online survey of recreational sea angling catches in England
Annex 5_Online
Catch SA2012 Report
Annex 6: Angling tourism study in the Isles of Scilly
Annex 6_IOS Tourist
SA2012 Report.pdf
13

We would like to acknowledge the support of the following organisations and individuals
for their contributions to the steering group:
• AFBINI: Carrie McMinn
• Angling media: Mike Thrussell, Phil Arnott.
• Angling Trades Association: Naidre Werner
• Angling Trust: David Mitchell.
• Bass Anglers' Sportfishing Society: Ian Misselbrook, Nigel Horsman.
• Cefas: Mike Armstrong, Kieran Hyder
• Cornish Federation of Sea Anglers: John Munday.
• Countryside Council for Wales: Bryn Jones, Colin Charman
• Defra: Delyth Dyne, Emma Boyd, Leila Fonseca.
• IFCAs: Sarah Clark, John Lamb, Alex Senechal, Robert Clark.
• Marine Scotland: David Turnbull
• MMO: Kevin Williamson, Sarah Pilgrim-Morrison, Jodie Hargreaves, Matt Elliot.
• North Thames Boatmen’s Association: Stuart Belbin, Chris Mole.
• Professional Boatman's Association: Chris Caines, Lyle Stantiford
• substance: Adam Brown
• University of Cardiff: Annette Roberts, Max Munday.
• University of Tasmania: Jeremy Lyle.
We would like to thank the other people who have contributed to the steering group
meetings at different times, and the IFCA surveyors who visited almost 2,000 stretches of
shoreline interviewing almost 2,500 shore and private boat anglers, and distributing around
20,000 flyers.