Five minutes... with voluntary bailiff Phil Hoult
Dom Garnett meets Phil Hoult to gain an insight into the life of a Voluntary Bailiff
Patrolling all manner of fisheries, there’s seldom a dull day out for Devon bailiff and all-round angler Phil Hoult.
His role with the Voluntary Bailiff Service has given him a fascinating window into his local waters, from rare wildlife to less welcome visitors. Dom Garnett caught up with him on patrol...
i’m guessing a lot of anglers who q
consider volunteering for the VBS might worry it will eat into their fishing time or have other negatives. How do you find it?
Phil Hoult: It’s the opposite for me, I think it adds another element. In many ways it can improve your fishing. So much of it is about building a good network of contacts, and you get a lot of inside information in the process.
As a trained bailiff, you are a very desirable person for clubs and syndicates to have as a member, too. Phase One VBs are trained to report what we see and hear, the ‘eyes and ears’ if you like.
A fishing trip is important time spent watching the water, so being a VB does not affect personal fishing time in any way. At Phase Two, which is a higher level bailiff still in the pilot stages at present, VBs are empowered to check rod licences, working alongside with the EA. They are expected to contribute four hours a week... not a huge demand on time.
We’re guessing every day is q
different, but what are some of the more surprising things you’ve seen lately on the bank?
PH: You never really know what’s coming next. There’s been a real explosion of goldfinches this year. Also kingfishers – I’ve never seen so many. Probably the oddest was while salmon fishing last year, though. From the corner of my eye, I spotted a dark shape. I thought at first it was a person swimming, but it was a seal! It came upriver several times on the tide, but thankfully returned to the sea of its own accord.
Sometimes you do also see some quite alarming things on the edge of the city, where I also patrol. One evening, I saw two women hanging around in a swim, one of whom had her backside hanging out! They were drug users and the other was trying to inject her in the behind. Next minute they were chatting away to me as if everything was completely normal.
How are you received by most q
anglers on the bank? are they pleased to see you or is there some aggro involved?
PH: The vast majority of anglers are very obliging and glad to see you. Tact and caution are a must, though – the last thing you want is to be gung ho.
I’m always in friendly mode first, rather than jumping to judgment. My first question is almost always:
“How’s it fishing?”
As a Phase One VB I am not there to check EA rod licences, it’s more about contributing to the new intelligence-led system that’s really key to what we do.
I am also a club bailiff, though, so the roles complement each other well and I do ask to see different club and syndicate memberships. Quite often you get shown a national rod licence in the process – or quickly get a sense of whether an angler is legitimate or not.
As for excuses for not having the right ticket, “I left it in my car” is one classic. When you ask when they’re parked they’ll then say it’s at home!
You also quite commonly get folks trying their luck on private or club water by saying: “I thought this was free fishing.”
Apart from dealing with
Q
illegal fishing, what other responsibilities come with being a voluntary bailiff?
PH: Lots of things. Keeping good signage is one. I’ve just been putting up more multilingual signs provided by the Angling Trust’s regional officer. Otherwise, I report all kinds of things besides fishing-related offences. Wildlife is also an issue – any injured animals. Antisocial behaviour is another one, as is fly tipping, which I report to the council.
There’s a general perception
Q
that fishery crimes aren’t taken seriously enough. What would you say to that?
PH: When you get people involved in illegal activity at fisheries they’re very likely to be involved in other stuff as well. When people couldn’t care less about buying a rod licence, there’s a fair chance they couldn’t care less about other laws.
You just never know what else is going on, and we share a lot of information with the police, who in turn get a better understanding of fisheries crime through their work with us.
There are strong opinions on
Q
enforcement and illegal fishing. What can clubs and anglers do that would help the most? PH: Number one has to be – don’t moan, report it! These days we all know there isn’t the money for hundreds of bailiffs.
But if everyone reports things, rather than just putting it on Facebook, we can all help each other! Everyone, angler and non-angler alike, can do their bit.
I do sometimes worry that a lot of people – and especially the high tech generation – tend to assume someone else will sort everything out on their behalf.