Rules, Sizes and Conservation

Bass is the most heavily regulated species you'll encounter from the shore here, and the rules apply to shore anglers exactly as they do to boats.

During February and March you may still fish for bass, but every fish must be returned. From 1 April to 31 December, and in January, you may keep up to three fish a day provided each is at least 42cm. No bass may be taken by fixed nets at any time.

There are also bass nursery areas with their own restrictions under a 1990 order, which can impose additional closed periods beyond the February–March window. Several south coast estuaries and creeks fall into this category, so if you fish harbour or creek marks it's worth checking whether your venue is designated.

Sources: MMO — Bass Fishing Guidance (updated Feb 2026) · Southern IFCA — Bass regulations

The Solent and the whole Isle of Wight sit within the Southern IFCA district, which also covers Hampshire and Dorset. Southern IFCA operates a Minimum Conservation Reference Size byelaw, and — this is the part people miss — it applies to recreational anglers, not just commercial fishermen.

The byelaw wording is direct: a person must not take, retain, land or transport any listed species measuring less than the specified size, and any such fish must be returned to the sea immediately.

Two shellfish figures worth knowing if you gather as well as fish: mussels have a 50mm minimum in the district, and oysters must not pass through a 70mm ring. Cockles must not pass through a 23.8mm square gauge.

Source: Southern IFCA — Minimum Sizes byelaws

For sea fishing from the shore in England, no rod licence is required. That's a common point of confusion because freshwater angling does need one from the Environment Agency.

The distinction matters at venues where the two meet. If you're fishing an estuary or creek and you might encounter migratory species such as sea trout, different rules apply and a licence may be needed. If in doubt about a particular mark, check before you fish rather than after.

Selling your catch is an entirely different matter. Recreational anglers cannot sell fish they've caught without the appropriate permit — Southern IFCA operates a Fishing for Sale permit scheme for that.

Most fish returned from the shore survive. Some don't, and the difference is usually down to a few seconds of handling.

• Wet your hands first. Dry hands strip the protective slime coat and leave the fish open to infection.
• Support the body. Never hold a decent bass vertically by the jaw — it damages the spine and jaw structure. Support it horizontally under the belly.
• Use a disgorger or forceps. If a fish is hooked deep, cut the trace close rather than tearing the hook out. A hook left in place is far less damaging than a wrecked throat.
• Barbless or crushed barbs make unhooking quicker and do less damage, at a small cost in lost fish.
• Keep it out of the air. Have the camera ready before the fish comes out of the water, not after. Thirty seconds is plenty.
• Don't drag fish up shingle. Wade in and unhook in the water where you safely can.

Rays deserve a specific mention. Thornbacks are best lifted supporting the whole body rather than by the tail or a wing, and they have a spined tail worth respecting. Smoothhound have crushing plates rather than cutting teeth, so they're harmless to handle, but they fight hard and tire — hold one upright in the water until it kicks away under its own steam.

The Solent has a dense concentration of protected sites — Special Areas of Conservation, Marine Conservation Zones and SSSIs cover a great deal of the coastline, particularly the harbours and the north-east of the island.

Rod-and-line angling from the shore is generally permitted within these, but some restrictions do apply, particularly around bait digging, shore gathering and access to bird nesting areas during the breeding season. Southern IFCA publishes an interactive map showing which regulations apply where, which is worth a look before you fish somewhere new.

Separately from the fisheries rules, a lot of Solent shoreline is privately owned or has restricted access. Being on the beach legally and fishing legally are two different questions.

Source: Southern IFCA — All regulations · Southern IFCA — Isle of Wight conservation