New wave Can fishing capture Cornwall's youth?

Taster days and training offer teenagers an escape from seasonal work - and give a boost to threatened industry

- By Rachel Stevenson NEWLYN

It's mid-morning on a rare calm day in Newlyn, Cornwall. Will Roberts is back at the quayside with a catch of mackerel to unload, having set off from the harbour before dawn. At 22, he is something of a rarity here, one of a handful of young fishers running their own small commercial boat from the port.

"It's a magical feeling when you set out in the dark, with no one else around, and see the Milky Way in the sky above you," he said. "I couldn't imagine working in an office or somewhere indoors, and not be surrounded by all of this."

Watching Roberts land his catch is a group of potential new young recruits keen to learn more about career opportunities at sea. They are here as part of a taster day run by Seafood Cornwall Training and the Cornwall Fish Producers' Organisation (CFPO), with the aim of encouraging young people into fishing.

Cornwall has high levels of self-employed, part-time work, much of it tourism related. Young people's job options are often poorly paid and insecure. Fishing is one of the anchors of Cornwall's year-round economy, worth £130m ($175m) and responsible for 7,800 jobs across the supply chain, according to a report by the CFPO. Every fisher out at sea supports 15 jobs onshore, from wholesalers to chefs.

A couple of fishing veterans show the group around the harbour, demonstrate some basic knots and splices and give them an insight into what can be a lucrative and long-term way of life, here on their home shores.