Clattercote Reservoir

Clattercote Reservoir gives you one substantial stretch of water rather than a handful of little pools. It’s 21 acres near Claydon, with the official address on Mollington Road, Banbury, OX17 1EN. The appeal is pretty straightforward: mixed coarse fishing, plenty of pegs and the option of a day session, an overnight stay or a booked match. If you like a reservoir setting, there’s plenty here to get your attention.

• 1 lake: Clattercote Reservoir
• Fish: carp, bream, tench, roach, pike
• Tickets from: Adult day permit — £9, one rod.
• Find it: Banbury · OX17 1EN

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

Clattercote Reservoir gives you one substantial stretch of water rather than a handful of little pools. It’s 21 acres near Claydon, with the official address on Mollington Road, Banbury, OX17 1EN. The appeal is pretty straightforward: mixed coarse fishing, plenty of pegs and the option of a day session, an overnight stay or a booked match. If you like a reservoir setting, there’s plenty here to get your attention.

The stock claims are worth a proper look before you decide what to target. The fishery puts the average carp at 13lb, with specimens exceeding 30lb, and bream reaching 14lb. Tench are present too. The published roach best is 2lb 10oz, while pike have reached 26lb. That’s a cracking mix of species and sizes, although none of those figures tells you what your own session will produce.

The bankside layout is a big part of the place. There are 122 jetty-style pegs, another 10 pegs on the dam wall and a wooden walkway around the reservoir. That gives Clattercote a distinctive setup compared with a simple grass-banked pool. There’s a portable toilet onsite, too. Keep your expectations practical rather than plush: that’s the confirmed facilities picture, so this is a guide to the fishing rather than promises of extra comforts.

For a straightforward day out, permits are bought from the bankside bailiff, which keeps the ticket arrangements nice and simple. Adult and concession day permits each cover one rod, with a separate charge for a second. There’s also an evening permit, but its hours aren’t specified, so don’t assume when it starts. Concession prices require a concessionary rod licence. Worth getting that bit bob on before you turn up with the tackle.

The reservoir is open around the clock, and year-round fishing is listed. A night permit covers 24 hours and two rods, giving anglers a longer-session option without confusing it with the standard day ticket. Match fishing has its own arrangements: book online more than seven days ahead, with at least ten anglers. There’s a match peg charge and a non-refundable booking fee, so a club outing needs a little organisation rather than a last-minute punt.

Before you get clipped up, check your tackle against the rules. Barbless hooks are required, rigs must use a single hook except when pike fishing, and braided mainline is prohibited apart from spod, marker or pike fishing. Those exceptions matter if you switch between approaches. For anything not covered here, including the evening permit window, ring the bailiff with the fishery between 9am and 6pm. A quick call beats avoidable faff on the bank.

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 — “Clattercote is a proper mixed coarse reservoir near Banbury: 21 acres, jetty-style pegs and carp claimed to top 30lb. Day-ticket fishing, overnight sessions and organised matches are all catered for, with a portable loo keeping the facilities simple.”

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.