Get Hooked on Fishing (ghof) is an angling charity which creates opportunities for young people, building a brighter future for them, their families and local community.
It was set up in 2000 by Mick Watson, then a policeman in County Durham, who used angling, which was his passion, to engage local young people in a rewarding activity divert them from anti-social behaviour.
Its success in improving school attendance rates and involving participants in positive alternatives to criminal behaviour resulted in interest from politicians and local agencies across the country.
The Home Office Positive Futures said: “Most Youth Service professionals who have encountered the Get Hooked on Fishing scheme have sensed something special about the project. There is an apparent synergy of vision, commitment, process and tangible outcomes.”
Some schemes are based on coarse fishing, some on sea angling and some on fly fishing.
The trust works with partners like the Environment Agency, the Angling Trust, the Angling Development Board, Positive Futures, charitable trusts, central and local government.
Most importantly, the charity seeks to engage with local communities, particularly those who have high level of economic or social deprivation.
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