Club Fishing Rules
Definitions and Entitlements
Brynmill and District Angling Club currently permits use of lakes/ponds (“The Waters”) for Coarse Fishing. The Waters are known as;
a) Fendrod Lake
b) Half Round Ponds
Annual Permits purchased anytime in 2021 are valid for one year from the date of purchase. Annual Permits purchased anytime in 2022 are valid until the 31st March 2023. Thereafter all Annual Permits are valid for a season, commencing 1st April to 31st March.
“Associate Angling Permit – day and night”: Entitles the holder to fish at all Waters at all permitted times, in accordance with the rules outlined below.
“Associate Angling Permit – day only” Entitles the holder to fish at all Waters during daylight hours ONLY (dawn to dusk), in accordance with the rules outlined below.
“Members Angling Permit – day and night” Entitles the holder to fish at all Waters at all permitted times, in accordance with the rules outlined below and the Brynmill & District Angling Club (BDAC) Constitution.
“Members Angling Permit – day only” Entitles the holder to fish at all Waters during daylight hours ONLY (dawn to dusk) in accordance with the rules outlined below and the Brynmill & District Angling Club (BDAC) Constitution.
“Day ticket”: Entitles a non member to fish at the designated Water(s) for a 12-hour period during daylight hours ONLY (dawn to dusk) in accordance with the rules outlined below.
“Weekly Ticket”: Entitles a non member to fish all Water(s) for 7 days during daylight hours ONLY (dawn to dusk). In accordance with the rules outlined below.
“Guest Ticket”: a full club member may purchase two guest tickets each season to allow a guest angler to fish for 24 hours. The full member will be responsible for the behaviour and conduct of their “guest”.
General Rules
1. These rules apply to all Brynmill DAC Waters and the Angling Permit scheme irrespective of where your permit/day ticket was purchased. Holders of the club members’ Angling Permits should also be aware of the BDAC Club Constitution.
2. A valid Angling Permit and Environment Agency rod licence must be carried at all times. Non-permit holders will be required to purchase a day ticket that covers them during daylight hours (dawn to dusk).
3. Holders of night Angling Permits may fish overnight in accordance with rule 15 the ‘Specimen Fishing Rules’. Non permit holders are not permitted to fish overnight.
4. The Club now operates a Zero tolerance approach on all Litter including discarded fishing line. Any member that is found leaving any form of litter on the bank side will receive an immediate Life Ban. No bait to be taken to the waterside in tins, reusable containers only are allowed. Members must take all their rubbish home with them and not dispose of them in the bins around the lake. Anglers are responsible for the tidiness of their peg.
5. Use only barbless or micro-barbed hooks. No spinning or fly fishing allowed.
6. Keep-nets to be at least 8ft by 18ins in size. Any angler must have a recognised landing net for the species for which they are fishing. No fish over 5lb to be kept in keep-nets except during matches and at the discretion of the Match Organiser. Nets must be pegged-out correctly and the vast majority of the net underwater. Retention time should be minimal. Retention of large fish is strongly not recommended in warm weather.
7. Anglers shall be responsible for their own behaviour and of friends who accompany them on the bankside. Noise, bad language, unruly behaviour or intimidation of bailiffs or others, whether verbal or physical will not be tolerated. The use of illegal substances will not be tolerated.
8. The drinking of alcohol whilst fishing is not recommended for safety reasons. Anglers may drink in moderation with their own safety and the consideration of others in mind. Any empty/full cans or bottles of alcohol must not be left on display to the public.
9. No angler to permanently remove any fish from any water
10. Senior anglers may use a maximum of 3 rods on all waters. You must not cast into another angler’s swim. As per NRW byelaws, do not leave your rods unattended with either a hook or bait in the water. It must be possible to exert immediate physical control over any rod with bait or hook in the water. Bailiffs will interpret that you must be no more than 20 yards or 2 pegs from your rods irrespective of whether you carry a receiver. Fishing only permitted from designated pegs. Anglers fishing on the large platforms, pegs 29, 38. 42, 47, 51, 54, 58, 67, 73 and 78 must not leave the peg if either their hook or bait is in the water, they must reel in all their rods before they leave the peg.
11. Junior anglers (under 16 years) must only use one rod at a time, unless all rods are alarmed (a maximum of two rods may then be used on any water). All juniors have to be supervised by an adult and fish with them, and can only night fish with an adult member. You will not be allowed to place them in separate “peg”, they must fish from the same place as yourself. If the adult is also fishing then they can only fish a maximum of 3 rods in total between the adult and junior member. If the adult has to cast, play fish and generally carry out fishing duties for the juniors then they too will need a fishing licence and permit.
12. Matches to be pegged around existing anglers on the water. During the build up to an open match, non-competitors must vacate the water by 7am on match days or 1pm Saturday for 24hr carp matches.
13. Bailiffs have the right to check angler’s permits and fishing tackle and anglers must be willing to comply with all reasonable requests. A non-refundable day ticket must be purchased if a valid Permit cannot be produced.
14. No cars allowed on the bankside. Anglers must use designated parking areas or park on road obeying all traffic law.
Specimen Fishing Rules
15) a) If Carp fishing; –
(i) your landing net must be a min. width of 36ins.
(ii) you must have with you and use a suitably-sized carp unhooking mat with sides or a carp cradle.
(iii) you must use a mainline of at least 15 lb Breaking Strain and an appropriate carp rod, with a minimum test curve of 2.5lbs.
(iv) All rigs must have leads that will come off in the event of a breakage to avoid fish trailing leads or becoming tethered, rig checks will be undertaken by bailiffs.
b) Fish must be weighed in appropriate weigh-sling and not in a carp landing net.
c) Carp sacks are prohibited. The retaining of carp for more than 15mins in a net or weigh sling is also prohibited.
d) Floating baits can be used on one rod only by senior anglers, using utmost vigilance.
e) Anglers must carry and use a fish antiseptic to treat hook holds and any other injury.
f) Night Permit holders may fish sessions of up to 72 hrs on one peg on the Fendrod Lake. If bivvied on a grass peg, anglers are asked after 48hrs to relocate their bivvies to a new location to protect the grass banks. After 72 hrs anglers must relocate more than 10 pegs away. Return to the same peg is prohibited for a further 48hrs.
g) Night Permit Holders may only have 1 non-fishing guest with them if they fish overnight.
h) A bivvy is defined as a 1 or 2 man green or camouflaged angling shelter. A standard camping tent is not a bivvy
i) A bivvy must be sited on carp platforms where provided, and not on the grass bank above them and they must be placed as close as possible to the angler’s rods, and not zipped up whilst fishing to allow a speedy exit in the event of a run. Bailiffs have the right to ask anglers to relocate their bivvy nearer to the water’s edge and the angler’s rods if they have been sited incorrectly.
j) Night Permit Holders may fish overnight sessions on the Half Round Ponds of no more than 48hrs, then they must leave the ponds for 24 hours. Return to the same peg is prohibited for a further 48hrs.
k) On the Half Round Ponds, no fishing is allowed off the steep bank. A clear thoroughfare must be maintained at all times.
l) There is no fishing on peg 83 & 37 of the Fendrod Lake.
m) No bait boats on club waters.
n) Day fishing only is permitted on pegs 32 to 36 of the Fendrod Lake (Dawn till Dusk), and anglers must fish with their rods locked up at all times on these pegs.
o) Anglers fishing on The Fendrod lake must adhere to the following “Spawning Protocol” when the fish are spawning.
SPAWNING PROTOCOL 1
In the event that fish are seen spawning all over the lake the whole of the lake will be closed and all anglers must immediately stop fishing. This will be called SPAWNING PROTOCOL 1. The lake will then remain closed for a period of 7 days from the last sighting of spawning fish. If during the initial 7 days the carp start spawning again, we will continue to keep the lake closed for a period of 7 days from the last sighting of spawning carp to allow the fish to rest and recover. Once 7 clear days of no spawning activity have been observed we will open Pegs 10 to 27, 51 & 54 for a further period of 7 days with open water fishing only, no fishing in the margins will be allowed. The lake will only be opened in full after a further period of 7 days of no spawning activity has taken place. If the carp start to spawn again during this period the whole process will start again.
SPAWNING PROTOCOL 2
If the event that the carp are seen spawning in one specific area of the lake, the lake will be closed for 7 days but Pegs 10 to 27, 51 & 54 will remain open for open water fishing only, no fishing in the margins will be allowed. This will be called SPAWNING PROTOCOL 2. The lake will only be opened in full after a further period of 7 days of no spawning activity has taken place. If the carp start to spawn again during this period the whole process will start again.
We will communicate to all members via the Clubmate portal when either SPAWNING PROTOCOL 1 or 2 is active and again when the SPAWNING PROTOCOL is deactivated.
p) All carp to be photographed in the swim captured and not lifted more than 18” above the mat/cradle.
q) Anglers in breach of any of these rules can be excluded immediately at the discretion of the bailiff pending a final disciplinary hearing/decision by the committee.
r) Any angler receiving two written warnings in one season will be excluded for 6 months.
s) Bailiffs have the right to ask you to move or leave the lake if they see that you are not complying with rules or you are putting yourself, a member of the public or the welfare of the fish at risk.
t) RULES FOR CARP ANGLERS FISHING PEGS 32 to 36 (Day Pegs)
(i) Maximum of 2 rods, both locked up, fishing on top of the rods.
(ii) Do not leave the swim without reeling in first.
(iii) When you catch a fish, you must retain it in your landing net in the water and reel your second rod in before you unhook, weigh and photograph it.
(iv) Anglers fishing day peg 36 – casting only from the peg, no walking down the bank and dropping your rig in, and baiting poles are not allowed on this peg. Only Solid Bags and or PVA mesh bags can be used and attached to hook baits if targeting carp, and no baiting up or pre baiting is allowed. The only exception to this is match anglers targeting other species.
Rule Adherence /Health and Safety
i) Rules at all Waters are monitored by appointed Bailiffs.
ii) Club member Angling Permit holders will be dealt with in accordance to BDAC Club Constitution.
iii) All other anglers will be dealt with by the designated club sub-committee.
iv) Ignorance of any rule will not be accepted as an excuse.
v) For operational and Health & Safety reasons, rules may be temporarily amended by Brynmill and
District Angling Club. Anglers will be made aware of the temporary arrangements through the notice
boards, BDAC website or through the Bailiff Team.
vi) Rules are reviewed and agreed periodically.
Club Constitution
1. This organisation is to be known as the Brynmill & District Angling Club (The Club)
2. The Club holds a current Licence agreement with the City and County of Swansea (Council) for use of Swansea Enterprise Zone Lake (The Fendrod) and Half Round Ponds (Water or The Waters)
The Club defines “Club Membership” as a valid club Seasonal Angling Permit that allows use of The Waters.
3. The object of the Club is to provide and promote freshwater coarse fishing in the City of Swansea and surrounding area. The term ‘he/him’ used in this document should be understood to read ‘he/him or she/her’.
4. The business of the Club shall be transacted by a Committee, which shall consist of Elected Officers and a number of Members as seen necessary to form an effective management unit for the club in any one year.
5. The Committee must support both Pleasure, Match and Specimen/Carp fishing without bias towards one branch of the sport. In addition, no one of our bailiff-controlled waters is to be favoured at the expense of the other.
6. The Elected Officers shall consist of Chairman, Club Secretary and Treasurer. Five persons including 2 Elected Officers(preferably Chairman/Vice Chairman & Secretary), shall constitute a quorum at committee meetings.
7. Sub committees may from time to time be formed. They may contain non-committee members but must have at least one committee member within them to report back to the main committee. The quorum of the sub-committee shall be determined in the first meeting of the sub-committee itself.
8. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of all members shall ideally be held no later than the 1st March each year, to elect Officers and to pass the accounts. The date of the AGM will be notified on the Clubs Website and Facebook page 28 days (where practical) prior to the meeting. Nominations and items for agenda should be made in writing or by email to the Secretary, to reach him no less than 14 days prior to the AGM. The proposer of the nomination or agenda item must attend the meeting to support his proposal. Ten members (including committee members) shall constitute a quorum at an AGM.
Members who purchase their season angling permit in advance of the 1st. April for the new season will be allowed to vote at the AGM.
Members who have held Club Membership for less than 3 consecutive seasons will not be allowed to stand for a committee position.
Although the views of junior members are valued, voting will be restricted in the AGM to those members who are 17 and over.
9. The Committee at the first meeting following the AGM shall elect from the Committee, a ViceChairman.
10. The Committee shall have the power to co-opt members on to the committee as and when required. However, that member must have been a Club Member for 3 seasons to be considered. In exceptional circumstances though (the definition of what is ‘exceptional’ to be determined by the committee), an angler or person with less than the required time-served, may be co-opted onto the committee.
11. Committee meetings are to be held at the discretion of the Committee though preferably monthly/bi-monthly. Ordinary Club Members may attend in a non-voting capacity. Any Committee Member failing to attend 3 consecutive committee meetings without tendering apologies to the Secretary, must attend the following committee meeting to explain his absence. Failing to attend this meeting will be considered as a resignation from the Committee.
12. The Chairman of a Committee Meeting will not have a vote in committee decisions unless there is a matter that is drawn. In which case the Chairman will have the deciding vote. This rule also applies to an EGM or AGM.
13. Committee members wishing to resign prior to the AGM or an Extraordinary General Meeting(EGM) must confirm their decision in writing to the Secretary. Their post does not have to be refilled; this will be at the discretion of the remaining Committee Members.
14. A Match Secretary will be appointed by the Committee annually, though in practice this will be made at the AGM after the election of Officers. The Match Section shall make it’s own decisions regarding Match Fishing, but at all times will be accountable to the general committee of the Club.
15. The Treasurer shall receive monies collected and record same. An annual balance of accounts sheet shall be prepared, and a summary of same made available to the membership at each AGM. Accounts must be audited as soon as possible after the end of the financial year(1st January to 31st December). However, it is accepted that the audited accounts may not always be available by the following AGM. If the latter is the case, this must be explained to the membership at the AGM. A copy of the audited accounts must be passed to the Council as per the licence agreement.
16. The coaching arm of the Club is a separate body and while affiliated to BDAC is not ruled by this constitution. It is self-run, self funded and as such its business is its own.
17. The Club shall have 1 Head Bailiff who is appointed by the committee. However, the Head Bailiff may take on (or dismiss) his own team –the size of each team will be determined by the main committee. A bailiff will initially be taken on by the Head Bailiff as a Probationary Bailiff. He can become an Established Bailiff (at the discretion of his Head Bailiff) once he has served one season.
All bailiffs are to abide by the BDAC “Bailiff Code of Practice” at all times. Established Club bailiffs can be co-opted onto the committee as & when required
18. Each Committee Member and Established Bailiff shall be entitled to a Free Permit as a ‘thank you’ for services rendered to the Club. In addition the Club may have up to 3 Life Members who will also receive a Free Permit. No more than 21 free permits may be issued in any one season.
Committee members are entitled to claim reasonable expenses if they have done work for the Club initially out of their own pocket.
19. In extreme circumstances the Committee are empowered to limit the membership. This limitation on membership includes those persons the Committee consider to be detrimental to the reputation or running of the Club. Any officer of the Club has the right to suspend a member until a disciplinary hearing is called with regard to the terms set down in rule 21 and the bailiff code of practice.
20. Upon a written request from 20 or more members, the Secretary shall call an EGM, notice of which shall be served no later than 14 days (where practicable) prior to the meeting in the Evening Post. Specific reasons for the meeting will normally be given unless not in the Club interest to be made public.
21. Coarse Fishing Rules are reviewed and agreed annually. Rules may be temporarily amended by the Committee for operational and Health and Safety reasons. Anglers will be made aware of temporary arrangements as soon as possible through appropriate means. Coarse Fishing Rules for club Waters will be on the Club website and on the notice boards at each water.
22.Members of the Club whose conduct is inappropriate or who decline to abide by any of the Rules or Bylaws may be expelled or suspended by a resolution passed at a meeting of the disciplinary subcommittee where their subscriptions may be forfeited.
Members shall have the right to appeal in person to the management committee with regard to any decision affecting themselves, provided that notice of such appeal be submitted to the Administrator, in writing, within seven days of notification of the decision. The committee’s decision will be final.
23. In the Event the Club is dissolved
This matter is being researched by the Secretary
24. Any alterations to the Constitution shall be dealt with at the AGM, an EGM or at a special meeting called for that purpose.
