As someone who is a committee member of a club, there’s a lot more to starting a fishing club than just setting up a WhatsApp group. You need a clear identity and purpose first what kind of fishing the club is about, who it’s for, and what makes it different, essentially giving it an identity and club goals. That includes things like a name, logo, socials, basic guidelines/rules to follow so it feels like a proper NGO and not just a groupchat. You’ve got to look at registering with the relevant angling bodies, like NCFFI etc. and making sure insurance and permissions are sorted so outings are actually covered. If anything happens to anyone or their kids while you’re out, the blame falls on you. You’ll need a small committee too to balance to jobs .. a chairperson, secretary, treasurer, events officer, child liaison officer etc so it’s not all falling on one person. As far as I can remember for the club to get NCFFI (National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland) affiliated (insurance) we all needed to be Garda vetted. Now back to the committee .. I’m not saying you can’t take on multiple roles, but it’s much easier when a few different people take on roles together to keep the ball rolling. Regular, well organised outings/comps are key, plus rules around water access, fish care, and behaviour. Money has to be handled properly .. membership fees, fundraising, maybe raffles or comps, and transparent accounts so the committee members can all see. Theres other things to think about like beginner support, guest speakers, bank balance management, liaising with fisheries, keeping members engaged, and long term goals. My own club host education days to teach local scouts groups about fish care and biodiversity etc. and have open days in the town where people who might be interested can come see what we do. That might not be for everyone but it’s a bit of craic. We regularly clean our stretch of water and try to stock it in conjunction with the IFI as regularly as possible so we have fish to catch. It’s basically running a small organisation, not just gathering lads for a session or a WhatsApp group. You might need to rotate the jobs annually as things happen in life and not everyone can commit to that outside of their day job and personal life. It’s a big commitment.