Huntingdonshire Beekeepers’ Association is dedicated to promoting the welfare of honey bees and beekeeping and the importance and benefits of bees and other pollinators to our environment. Our educational activities cover four main areas.
Beekeeper Training
We provide training to new beekeepers through our annual Beginners’ Beekeeping courses. We also offer Beekeeping Taster Sessions if you would like to find out more about what beekeeping entails or would just like to get closer to the bees and see how we inspect a hive.
Visiting the Apiary
For those who just want to see the beekeepers at work and learn more about honeybees, you can visit us at the apiary in Hinchingbrooke Country Park and watch the bees through the large glass windows of our viewing gallery where there are displays and interactive children’s question boards. On Sunday afternoons throughout the summer, weather permitting, we have hive demonstrations between 2-3pm where you can watch beekeepers opening the hives, see the bees up close on their frames and listen to one of our beekeepers telling you all about honeybees and beekeeping.
Children
As well as the displays at the apiary, we also offer visits to schools and clubs (including Rainbows, Brownies, Cubs etc.). The format of these visits varies depending on the age and interests of the children.
Recent visits have included honey tasting, looking at bee keeping equipment and trying on beekeeping suits, smelling and touching honey comb, learning about the different types of bees that live in a hive and their roles, the importance of pollinators and also games about pollination and the waggle dance. We can also provide activities such as work sheets and colouring in templates.
Adults
We are often asked to provide speakers for local clubs and associations and are happy to tailor our talks to your preferences and situation. Talks can be provided online, outdoors or indoors and recent audiences have included Gardening Associations, the Women’s Institute and other clubs. We have a demonstration hive, a range of beekeeping equipment and honey and wax as well as other items we can bring with us and in addition, some of our members can speak on more specific topics relating to bees or honeybee products such as candle making and cooking with honey.
We do ask for a donation of £20 per hour plus £20 for travel and setup/clearing away of equipment for both school/club visits and talks to adult clubs and associations. This covers our volunteers’ expenses and costs to the Association.
Fayres and Shows
We attend a number of fayres and shows each year and are happy to share our knowledge about beekeeping, facts about honeybees and the pressures pollinators are under. We have members that may be available to sell honey and other bee related products and crafts.
