Stanborough Lake

Stanborough is a cracking-looking option on paper if you like a choice between chasing carp and having a mixed coarse session. Managed by Welwyn Garden City Angling Club, the fishing is on the 16-acre South Lake at Stanborough Road, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, AL8 6DF. We haven’t fished it ourselves, so this is a guide to what’s advertised, not a tale of getting bagged up.

• 2 lakes: South Lake, North Lake
• Fish: carp, tench, bream, roach, pike, perch
• Tickets from: Adult day ticket — per rod — £8 per rod
• Find it: Welwyn Garden City · AL8 6DF

Based on how each lake is set up — not a ranking.

Stanborough is a cracking-looking option on paper if you like a choice between chasing carp and having a mixed coarse session. Managed by Welwyn Garden City Angling Club, the fishing is on the 16-acre South Lake at Stanborough Road, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, AL8 6DF. We haven’t fished it ourselves, so this is a guide to what’s advertised, not a tale of getting bagged up. The main thing to know straight away: this is a fishing and watersports lake, rather than a water reserved just for anglers.

The club advertises carp to 35 lb, which gives the carp side proper appeal if you’re thinking about a PB. But there’s more here than lumps. Bream are advertised to 7 lb, tench to 6 lb and perch to 4 lb, alongside pike to 18 lb. Crucian carp, roach and rudd are also listed. That’s a useful spread for anyone who doesn’t want every trip to revolve around one species. Those advertised sizes aren’t a promise of what you’ll catch, mind, and there’s no reason to dress this up as an easy runs water.

For a daytime visit, the important detail is that adult and concession tickets are charged per rod. Don’t read the headline price as covering your whole setup. The club permits three carp rods year-round on its day-ticket waters, while members need a day ticket for their third rod. The 2025–2026 membership form describes two-rod daytime fishing from dawn to dusk. Keep those arrangements separate when planning your session, rather than assuming a membership allowance and a casual day ticket work exactly the same way.

Fancy staying for the night? Night sessions must be booked with the head bailiff, even if you’re a member, and all swims are advertised as available for night fishing. The venue page names Gerald Esmond and gives the fishery; a March 2025 newsletter supplies an alternative Stanborough number, the fishery. There’s also a ticket covering one day and one night. The night and 24-hour rod allowances aren’t specified on the current tariff page, so get that bit agreed before loading the car. It’s a small check that could save a fair bit of faff.

Lake fishing is available all year round, and the River Lea alongside the South Lake can be fished in season. Fishing platforms have been installed on both the lake and river. Don’t confuse the South Lake with the North Lake: that’s used for boating, is listed as a stock lake, and fishing there is prohibited. Before setting up, use the club’s dip tanks for nets, weigh slings and unhooking mats, and repeat that after fishing. Casting towards aerators is prohibited too. Those are the practical details worth having bob on before choosing your swim.

Good background reading. Most of it is a few years old, so treat it as a starting point and ask on the day.

Videos linked by the fishery

• Our read

  Checked Sept '26 — “Stanborough’s 16-acre South Lake offers mixed coarse fishing and carp advertised to 35 lb, with day tickets and pre-booked nights. It’s a shared watersports lake, though, and the neighbouring North Lake is strictly off limits for fishing.”

This is our own summary of recurring public feedback and the venue details we checked, not a copied customer review or a promise you’ll catch. Feedback changes, so we keep it separate from the Tackle Index score.