ACTOR PAUL YOUNG yesterday launched a national project which, it is hoped, will attract some 50,000 young Scots to angling over the next decade, writes Ken Bell, angling correspondent.

Paul, who presents many popular TV angling programmes and is a former Scottish International fly fisher, launched the Scottish National Angling Programme (SNAP) at Kingennie Fishery outside Dundee.

In doing so he spoke of the happiness and adventure angling brought him over the years. “Angling offers young people a superb hobby with a chance to learn new skills and spend time in the countryside. SNAP is an outstanding project which promises to enrich the lives of thousands of young Scots.”

Paul said he had started angling young and admitted he was still very much ‘hooked on fishing’.

Like many other sports, angling, with an estimated 30,000 young anglers, is failing to attract many under-16s and SNAP aims to help re-establish angling as one of Scotland’s most popular pastimes and also enrich the lives of young people and help the fight against anti-social behaviour.

The programme was initiated by the Scottish Countryside Alliance Educational Trust, which intends to help run the project for three years by which time it will hopefully be self-sustaining. It has been supported by all leading angling organisations in Scotland, taking in game, coarse and sea- angling, and aims to get many angling clubs and associations involved in developing the sport for youngsters.

Tony Andrews, founder of SNAP and chairman of SCAET, said, “Angling is such an important part of Scottish life. It is a lifelong passion for thousands of Scots and it generates more than £100 million a year for the national economy. SNAP will not only rejuvenate Scottish angling but help us secure the future of this wonderful pastime.”

SNAP manager Ian Robertson, who helped the SRU develop its youth rugby programme, said one problem was that coaching was essentially one-on-one or one-on-two system. So it was hoped to attract many anglers into becoming coaches, teaching youngsters all the elements that make up fishing.

He hopes to get clubs more involved in this aspect by setting up clusters that could also involve schools and colleges.

The four key projects are to induct a new generation of anglers by a sustainable provision of coaches. Induction centres would be created where qualified instructors introduced newcomers to the sport.

SNAP also aims to provide a safe forum for young people to access angling at a reasonable price and divert people from abuse, anti-social behaviour and crime. To do this it hopes to re-structure pre-active angling clubs and help them activate club members.

SNAP has already had a favourable response from clubs in Aberdeen, the Highlands and south-west.

As part of the programme, an online angling club, Castaways, has been launched by a group of Forfar Academy pupils who took a break from serious fishing to show what the website entailed, before heading back to the lochside in pursuit of rainbow trout.

Castaways will provide information on angling, new skills and techniques and the opportunity of cheap clothing and equipment.