Based at Carrgreen Lane in the Lymm area of Warrington, Heatley Mere is well-placed fishery owned and managed by Dunham Massey Angling Club. With beautiful surroundings, the fishery features a lake that is technically defined as a flash. A flash is basically a natural collapse or trench that has formed in the land that fills with water, either from rain or in the case of Heatley Mere, from a little brook. It covers an area of around 3 acres and has depths ranging from 3ft to 6ft.

In addition to the main lake, there is also another called Little Mere, much smaller and about 50 yards away. Both lakes contain a plentiful stock of various interesting and desirable fish such as crucian, roach, Chubb, perch, bream, tench and carp. The carp you can land at Heatley Mere can run to weights as much as 20lbs+.

It’s important to note that there are 20 numbered pegs where you can fish from and that on the side of the lake where there are houses, no angling is allowed and there is a two-rod limit if you are fishing with a group (you may be allowed to fish with three if you are on your own, upon request).

Although you can fish throughout the year, if you want to fish at night, you need to have a permit and book in advance online. A lot of work has bee done to make this a quality place to land some decent catches from and judging by reviews, it more than lives up to its reputation and all the effort by the owners was not in vain.

Ham Green Fisheries or Ham Green Lake is owned and run by the local Ham Green Fishing Club in the Chapel Hill area of Pill in Bristol. It has been open for fishing for many years, decades even and consists of two lakes. These lakes have a very interesting history. For instance, the road that runs across the bottom lake dates to the Roman Empire, and the water in the lake was used to supply Ham Green Hospital, which is notable for treating soldiers injured in the Crimea War who made it back home.

In the past, it has been owned by a few different people and organisations, including the City of Bristol Angling Club. Nowadays it is owned by Bill Hunt and with the assistance of his bailiff Tom he has updated and renovated the fishery to make it an enjoyable place to fish.

In terms of fish breeds, you can land here, the top lake was just recently stocked with 11,000+ course fish, consisting of a mixture of tench, perch, bream, Rudd and roach. However, for the most part, Ham Green Lake is used for carp fishing more than anything else, particularly the bottom lake as there are always around 50 carp in there, with many reaching weights of up to 20lbs.

Night fishing is permitted, upon request and fishing is available throughout the year.  Although keep nets are allowed, when you are fishing for carp, you can’t use them.

In terms of facilities, there is car parking at the bottom lake.

German Lane Fishery found along the road of the same name, in Chorley, Lancashire is a popular fishing spot consisting of 2 generously sized lakes, one with two islands and another that is oval-shaped and an island in the centre that runs along its entire length. The latter is the match lake, but both reach depths of as much as 8-feet and are well-stocked with a reasonable amount and variety of fish.

Whether you are looking to land Rudd, roach, ghosties, crucian, tench or carp, this is a great place to fish. There has been known to be tench weighing as much as 8lbs and carp as big as 27lbs.

It is important to note that German Lane Fishery is unfortunately not open for public fishing, and that, therefore, all anglers need to hold a valid NRA rod Licence. Although it is open all-year-round, you can only fish at either of the lakes from dawn to dusk, as night fishing is not permitted.

It is advised that you make sure you are well-stocked up on all your bait and tackle before you head out to German Lane Fishery, though, as there are no additional facilities like bait or tackle supplied onsite. As tends to be the standard these days, you are not allowed to use barbless hooks, but keep mats are permitted and ground bait is also allowed, though in moderation.

The site owners of German Lane Fishery operate on a strict policy of anglers clearing up their rubbish after themselves.

Gaywoods Fishery is a private member’s syndicate fishery found on Station footpath in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire. Consisting of a manmade 4.5-acre lake that was dug out between 1978 and 1980, the water is mostly 12-feet deep, though some areas can be as much as 35-feet deep, depending on the time of the year.

Three natural springs provide feed the lake and there is an island located in the middle. Although it started life as a fishery, it now offers coarse fishing and a wide array of the usual suspects such as tench, roach, perch, chub and carp. The fish usually spawn at the roots of the large weeping willow trees that hang over the edges of the lake. If you are fishing during the winter months, you may find it harder to land any carp, but as there is plenty of silverfish to try and land, it would be very hard to come away from Gaywoods without catching anything.

Strictly only carp pellets and barbless hooks are permitted and if you are going to use boilies, they should be on a stringer or hook, not loose or in PVA bags. As you may expect, landing nets and landing mats should be used always.

In terms of facilities, Gaywoods offers a limited amount of accommodation (it’s always worth calling well in advance to avoid disappointment) and in addition to a small lodge that sells some tackle and bait, there is a shop that sells food and drinks, onsite toilets and CCTV-monitored car parking.

Foxhills Fishery, found on Pinfold Lane in the West Midlands town Walsall, is a family-run establishment that has been operated by the Bull family for more than 30 years. Thanks to the steady and well-managed program of breeding and restocking over that period, the three pools that make up the fishery are all well-stocked.

Dr Bruno Broughton, the foremost expert on fish in the UK, checks and regulated the Foxhills pools. Across all three, you will find the same breeds of fish – carp, perch, rudd, tench, bream and roach. However, if you are looking to fish for tench, it’s the smaller pool that has a larger supply of that breed, whereas the upper pool has better stock levels of the barbell. They operate a strict barbless hook only rule, that is checked and enforced. Acceptable tackle includes pellets, maggots and corn, while dog biscuits and bread are not allowed. All anglers are expected to use landing nets.

Aside from the fishing pools, there are simple but handy facilities in the form of the onsite car parking, ladies and gents’ toilets and a small shop. Although the water is open most of the year, during summer it is open between 7am and 7.30pm and during winter between 8am until dusk. Strictly no night fishing is permitted, and the gates are locked up at the end of the day.

If you are looking for a peaceful and rural location to while away the hours fishing with a great chance of landing a catch, regardless of your experience or ability, Foxhills is a great choice. There is a common saying that “if you don’t catch at Foxhills, you should choose a different sport”.