Anglers given option to buy lake

An angling club in Cumbria has been given the chance to buy a lake at a discount price before it is auctioned.

The county council wants to sell off Crofton Lake where members of Carlisle and District Coarse Angling Club have fished for the last 16 years.

The club had feared it would be made "homeless" if the sale went ahead, but now it has been given the chance to buy the lake for £30,000 - a 25% discount.

The club has until 31 December to raise the money to buy the 14-acre lake.

The lake was going to be auctioned along with property and land at the 140-acre Crofton Hall Estate on 21 October, but the lot has now been withdrawn.

'Compelling case'

The council is making the discount under its well-being disposal policy in recognition of the wider community benefits the club generates from Crofton Lake.

Councillor Stewart Young, leader of Cumbria County Council, said: "The angling club put forward a compelling case.

"Members explained not only how they've improved the lake and its surroundings in the years that they've been there, but also how the lake generates wider benefits for the community.

"It's the job of elected councillors to listen to the people who've put them there."

If the club buys the lake any profit it makes from its future sale will go back into the public purse.