NEWS
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Thames Region Flood Warning Update
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THE KINGS ARMS SANDFORD-ON-THAMES OXFORD
TEL: 01865 777095 |
| The Kings Arms, which has been extended over the years, is a Chef & Brewer destination food house in the pretty village of Sandford on Thames. We retain traditional features including three old open fireplaces, although only one is in working order. Our tables are all decorated with candles, this along with our soft background music creates a desirable family dining experience. Food can be eaten throughout the pub or outside in the garden. Meals can be chosen every day from an extensive main menu with a selection of wines to complement your choice. The particular feature of this lovely pub is the garden which overlooks the river with stunning views and barbeques in the summer . The children love it here as they can see the ducks and swans while parents relax in a peaceful and tranquil setting. Many of our clientele come from the passing boat parties. We have a small base of local regulars who enjoy a drink with friends. Come along soon to this relaxed pub with its welcoming atmosphere and bring the family too. |
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 Wednesday
18th November 2009 |
Work Party Off This Sunday |
| Sunday
15th November 2009 |
Campbell Notches First Win |
| Tuesday
10th November 2009 |
Society Appoint New Head Bailiff |
Please help us save our fish stocks from poachers. If you see anything illegal please phone Alan Campbell or the EA on 0800 80 70 60
| Monday
2nd November 2009 |
Illegal Fishing Now Reported At Sandford |
- Exactly where the alleged offence is
- What's happening
- How may people are involved and a description of them
- The registration numbers of any vehicles
Please leave a contact number so they can call you back.
| Sunday
1st November 2009 |
Perks On A Roll |
| Wednesday
28th October 2009 |
Coarse Fish Removal – Update On New Byelaws To Protect Fisheries |
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New byelaws that proposed to restrict the type and number of fish that anglers could legitimately take from rivers were put out to consultation in the summer, and attracted over 800 responses. However, the consultation revealed a range of opinion among anglers on whether they should be allowed to take the coarse fish that they catch.
Key findings from the consultation showed that:
• Many anglers believe that all coarse fish should be returned alive and
that measures are necessary to protect coarse fisheries.
• Almost half of people responding agreed that there should not be a
complete ban on the removal of fish and made compelling arguments for
allowing some fish to be taken. For example, predator anglers should be able
to take some small fish for live or dead baits. Fishery managers should be
allowed to remove damaging non-native fish species. Some argued that we
should allow one or two fish of certain species and sizes, notably pike and
grayling, to be taken for the pot or for fishery management purposes.
• Many argued that stillwaters are equally at risk from illegal fishing and,
as anglers pay the same licence fee irrespective of where they fish, these
fisheries should be equally protected. Many recognised the legal issues
around this, but asked whether these were insurmountable.
Thanks to this input from fisheries managers, anglers and other interested
parties, the Environment Agency has modified its proposals to take into
account their views.
The Environment Agency now proposes to:
• Prohibit coarse fish removal from rivers, whilst still allowing anglers to
take a some small fish for use as bait and a limited number of larger fish
of certain species and sizes
• Prohibit coarse fish removal from stillwaters, except with written
permission of the fishery owner.
Adrian Taylor, Fisheries Policy Manager, says; “We are very grateful for the
huge and informed response to the consultation, and we have acted by
re-shaping some of our proposals.”
“Having listened to what anglers and fishery owners have said we feel we
have got the balance right. No longer will it be legal to remove highly
prized specimen fish from rivers in England and Wales without specific
consent and the new rules will be clearer and easier to enforce.
“Hopefully, we can get the message across that, apart from a few exceptions,
such as taking some small fish for use as bait or for fishery management
purposes, catch and release should be the norm. Enforcement is critical to
the byelaws’ success and we will consider this over the coming months. We
also want to work with fishery management organisations and fishery owners
to help them to protect their waters.”
The Environment Agency expect to finalise and advertise the byelaws in
December, allowing 6 weeks for anyone to object or offer support, and apply
to government for confirmation early in the new year.
| Sunday
25th October 2009 |
Chub Brace Claims Thames Shield |
| Sunday
11th October 2009 |
Stocking Couldn't Come Any Quicker |
| Saturday
3rd October 2009 |
Sunningwell Stocking Update |
This is just the start, we plan to have some Crucian Carp in the lake by next Summer as well. We can only make this a good little fishery with your support, so please continue to help us.
| Sunday
27th September 2009 |
"Del Boy" Of The Mark |
| Sunday
20th September 2009 |
Hutchings Wins Aggregate Cup |
| Thursday
17th September 2009 |
Illegal Fishing At Sunningwell Lake |
- Exactly where the alleged offence is
- What's happening
- How may people are involved and a description of them
- The registration numbers of any vehicles
Please leave a contact number so they can call you back.
| Sunday
6th September 2009 |
Can Anyone Stop This Man! |
| Wednesday
2nd September 2009 |
Richard 'Dick' Butler |
'Dick' was Mr. Littlemore as he promoted the club in many ways through the ODAA and other organisations.
He will be sadly missed by his loving wife Sue. Sons Matthew, Mark and Simon and families.
Our deepest condolences to Sue and Family R.I.P.
| Monday
31st August 2009 |
Draw Time Reminder |
| Monday
23rd August 2009 |
Another Roach Bonanza |
| Sunday
16th August 2009 |
Wise Choice At Lodge Farm |
Barry was a clear winner today with 78-01-00 of carp all on the pole with paste.
| Wednesday
5th August 2009 |
Urgent call to anglers to stop removal of coarse fish |
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Described as ‘the most important rule change to affect coarse fishing in decades’, the consultation was posted on the internet by the Environment Agency in readiness for the passing of a new Marine Bill this autumn.
Changes include limiting the number of coarse fish which can be taken from rivers, and raising the maximum fine for offenders from £2,500 to a staggering £50,000. It would also become illegal to remove any rod-caught eels, given the current critical state of stocks of the species.
Rules preventing anglers from taking more than a set number of coarse fish already exist, but these are currently only regional in remit. The aim is to create national regulations, but this can only happen if enough anglers respond to the consultation.
Angling Trust board member Mike Heylin is disappointed by the lack of response to the consultation document, and thinks attitudes need to change if progress is to be made.
“Many anglers are just too apathetic and don’t seem to want to get involved. They will voice xenophobic anti-Eastern European views on the internet, but won’t bother to fill out a form. It’s incredibly depressing, and I just hope enough people care to take the trouble to complete the form,” said Mike.
Angling Times editor Richard Lee is also urging all anglers to get involved and help shape the future of the sport by safeguarding precious fish stocks from poachers.
“Sightings of illegal fishermen using several rods, along with photos of dead fish in gill nets and on the end of long lines are reported to Angling Times every week.
“Filling out this document is vital if we are to stop the rot before it’s too late – it literally takes a minute and will let authorities know just how passionate we anglers are about the subject,” said Richard.
To find and fill in the
document, click HERE.
| Sunday
2nd August 2009 |
Hutchings Takes Silverware |
| Sunday
26th July 2009 |
Anglers and Otters |
Daily Telegraph |
Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act it an offence to kill an otter, punishable by a £5,000 fine or six months in prison. They can only be hunted with a special licence, none of which have ever been issued.
Otters have been a popular feature on the current series of the BBC's wildlife show Springwatch, which ends this week. The programme has featured otters on the river Wensum, in Norfolk – one of the rivers where anglers say otters are having a destructive impact.
Many anglers will only discuss culling in private, fearing that public opinion will turn against them if they openly call for it. One of those now urging action is Ian Chillcott, one of the country's leading coarse anglers and a fishing writer. He said: "Fisheries are being absolutely destroyed by these cuddly, little murdering blighters. Livelihoods are being ruined but everyone is afraid to use the word 'culling'.
"No one wants widespread mass slaughter, but there is a need for very targeted culling. It has to be done in a controlled way and not indiscriminate. No one wants to get rid of them, just for them to be better managed."
Des Taylor, another angling writer, added: "Nobody wants to even talk about a cull but if they're causing serious financial damage to a business – which is what fisheries are – then maybe we should be thinking about a government licence which might allow proven troublesome otters to be killed. It already happens with cormorants which take huge amounts of fish.
"People think of otters as a nice cuddly, whispery thing and unfortunately they don't see the other side."
Until the 1970s, otters were hunted with otter hounds. If a cull were ordered now the most likely method of killing would be shooting at night, using night vision goggles.
Anglers say that some landowners and fishermen have already taken the law into their own hands, carrying out illegal culls of otters.
The sense of increasing frustration among anglers has prompted a meeting, taking place in Hemel Hempstead tomorrow, involving the Angling Trust, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Countryside Council for Wales, to find ways of tackling the issue.
Major angling organisations like the Angling Trust and groups from which it was formed have so far resisted public calls for a cull, although some senior officials have spoken of the need for such a move.
One said: "The official line is 'no cull'. But I think controls will come in at some point down the line."
The Angling Times has been campaigning on the issue, calling for more research into otter predation – with all the options left on the table.
Richard Lee, its editor, said: "The slaughter of these animals has been driven underground. It is already going on. If you watch £20,000 worth of stock disappear in just a few days – what are the owners going to do?
"We are desperate for research so the issue is fully understood. We don't want random culling. But we want to stop fisheries' owners taking the law into their own hands. We need some proper research with all the options on the table."
Otters came close to disappearing from the UK in the 1970s, following the effects of hunting, habitat loss and pollution in waterways, especially from the use of pesticides.
But pollution controls, habitat restoration and reintroduction programmes have turned the tide. In 2003, the last time a large-scale survey was carried out, the European river otter (lutra lutra) was present in more than five times as many areas as it was in 1979. The species is now even found in urban rivers.
However, anglers argue that the reintroduction schemes have been badly co-ordinated, with otters often released in unsuitable habitats. Moreover, the number of eels – once the otter's staple diet – has fallen dramatically over the intervening period, forcing the animals to feast on the same fish that are highly prized by anglers, like carp, barbel, pike, trout and salmon.
In some areas, anglers argue, entire fish populations have disappeared. What is particularly galling for them is that often the otters will not eat the fish, but simply take a large bite, killing them.
In 2007, an otter killed the 20lb British record barbel, called The Traveller, on the River Great Ouse, near Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire. Other prize specimens, some costing several thousand pounds per fish, have also been killed.
Some fishing clubs have already closed because their stocks have been plundered by otters, while others are having to slash their fees because they are now able to offer less fish to catch.
At the same time, clubs are having to spend thousands of pounds to restock. Some are installing specialist anti-otter fences, which prevent otters burrowing under or climbing over, but these are impractical at many sites.
Nick Pottle, secretary of the Lakeside angling club, near Lowestoft, said: "Our lake is now all but empty of fish, we have two families of otters that have cleared the fish out. The Environment Agency say we must put up a fence to stop the otters at our expense as we would not qualify for a grant. That is the end of our club."
At tomorrow's meeting, the Angling Trust will call for government support for specialist fences, in an effort to quieten calls for a cull.
Mark Lloyd, the chief executive, said: "What we need is public funding for fencing because fisheries are important economic units that provide people with their livelihoods. What has to be stressed is that anglers are not anti-otter. If I see one when I'm fishing on a river it makes my day."
Dr Tony Mitchell-Jones, a mammal specialist from Natural England, said that otters had been released into the wild at the rate of more than seven a year between 1983 and 1999, but that no captive-bred otters had been released since then.
"Things are looking much better for the otter but it is not yet back everywhere it should be. Control of otter populations is likely to be discussed at the meeting tomorrow. I'm not going to prejudge the situation but there is a presumption against the licensing of killing of protected species unless there are extremely good reasons for doing so. For culling, you would have to show that the control would contribute to the solution of a problem."
| Thursday
23rd July 2009 |
Junior Match Postponed |
| Sunday
19th July 2009 |
Sandford Picking Up |
| Sunday
12th July 2009 |
Last Gasp Tench Seals Match |
| Monday
29th June 2009 |
ODAA Maps Updated |
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| Sunday
28th June 2009 |
Venue Expert Is Streets Ahead! |
We are back at Milton Pools in January next year, so if you fancy it, book in early
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Sunday
21st June 2009 |
Persistence Pays Off |
| Tuesday
16th June 2009 |
River Season Begins |
Don't forget if you have any photo's of your catch send them to Alan Campbell to be included on the site
Tight Lines
| Sunday
14th June 2009 |
Adams Wins First Match |