National Symposium for Inshore and Small Scale Fisheries
In February 2026 a National Symposium was held in Newcastle to seek to turn the tide for the UK’s declining inshore and small-scale fisheries. Attended by 120 people, fishermen (including our Chairman) and their representative organisations, scientists, regulators, policy-makers and NGO staff met. The aim was to map a viable future for the small-scale inshore fleet.
It was a platform for fishermen to explain the particular challenges faced by small-boat operators, and through dialogue with Government, distil workable solutions. Many ideas were generated, framed around seven priority themes, which emerged in regional workshops in 2024.
Our island nation, which boasts some of the richest coastal waters in the world, has always been a nation of fishers. As a society, we continue to benefit from many sustainable and well managed fisheries that operate in our coastal waters, providing a source of livelihood, local economy, vibrant cultural heritage and national food security. Fish is a protein rich food source and, while commercial fisheries are of course vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and warming seas, they are resilient in ways that agriculture is not. It can rain all year long, or not rain at all, and our ability to keep producing food from the sea is not
threatened in the same ways as food production on land and so offers opportunities for building resilience.
Recent research by the Inshore and Small Scale Fisheries (ISSF) consortium has evidenced that the public benefits that flow from sustainable fisheries are clearly felt and valued by people who live, work and visit coastal towns.
READ THE PRESS RELEASE IN FULL HERE
