In short, if you wish to fish with a rod and a line, then the answer is YES. Irrespective of where you want to fish, the purpose of the licence is to allow you to use a rod and line to catch fish. There is a hefty £2,500 fine for fishing without a licence!
BUT DON'T WORRY, BUYING A LICENCE IS QUICK AND EASY ONLINE!
Rod Licences are not expensive and can be purchased for different lengths of time i.e. day / 8 day / year. For coarse fishing, with 2 rods, a year's licence currently costs just £30. A holiday angler's licence (8 days) is good value at just £12.
CHILDREN under 13 don’t need a licence. Licences for children aged between 13 and 16 are free BUT you still need to register for a junior licence.
It is really easy to purchase and can all be done online. Please visit the GOV.UK website for more information: https://www.gov.uk/fishing-licences
The money raised from the sales of these licences gets reinvested by the Environment Agency into Conservation and supporting Fisheries and can also help provide Fishery businesses with development grants!