Getting involved

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Belonging to a shooting organisation offers many benefits, including all important insurance cover.

Tuesday, 26 June 2007

Once you have your gun, we would like you to consider joining one of the UK's main national shooting associations.

"No - not more expense..." we hear you groan.

Well, for the £30 to £60 it is going to cost you (usually with good discounts for young people and students) you get a lot of advantages. Let's look at just a few of them:

Insurance
As a responsible shooter you will want to be properly insured when you go out with your gun. You may be the safest shot in the world, but accidents and injuries - although very rare - can happen. And in today's compensation-mad society, when people tend to rush into litigation over the slightest real or imagined hurt, it pays to be covered against third-party risks. Membership of the main associations gives you that cover, all within the fee.

We mention insurance first because affordable cover is quoted by many shooters as the main reason for joining. However, there are other equally important reasons.

Political clout
Over the past 30 years there have been two major changes in gun ownership legislation in the UK, and a lot of tinkering with shooting legislation in general in between. While that legislation was being considered the governments of the day were put under great pressure by the major shooting organisations to make the new laws fair.

Shooting didn't win on all points, but the basic rights of responsible shotgun and rifle ownership were preserved. Without that pressure they might easily not have been.

The main associations keep an eye on all government activity which could affect shooting, on a day to day basis.

Training
The training scope of the shooting associations is absolutely enormous. It covers everything from basic and advanced skills and shooting safety to efficient rat-catching on game shoots.

The associations train coaches and safety officers to instruct at all levels. In this way, they maintain the high standards the British shooting sports have traditionally enjoyed.

Competitions
If you wish to compete at clay shooting beyond club level, then membership of the relevant national association in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland is a must. Shooters are classified by their results, so shooters of all abilities from novices to international shots all have chances to win prizes.

These are just brief details of what the associations can do for you. To find out more (and there is a lot more) we highly recommend visits to the websites listed below:

Clay shooting:
- England: The Clay Pigeon Shooting Association
- Scotland: The Scottish Clay Target Association
- Wales: The Welsh Clay Target Shooting Association
- Northern Ireland: The Ulster Clay Pigeon Shooting Association

Field shooting throughout the UK:
- The British Association for Shooting and Conservation

All country sports, including shooting and fishing throughout the UK:
- The Countryside Alliance