Establishing a beekeeping club at the Coopers’ Company and Coborn School
Honey is the culmination of what the entire earth—rock, soil, water, plant, animal—can do when everything works together, catching a delicate scent that floats on a summer breeze and turning it into a clean flavour. *
The beginnings of our school beekeeping club can be traced back to the delivery of four queen bees in a small envelope to my school reception (school secretaries are much better than sorting offices at caring for such fragile deliveries!) I had been keeping bees for a few years, and had been keen to introduce beehives to my school, but had simply never got round to it. The arrival of these queen bees in their little envelope prison caused a great deal of interest around school, and led the Headteacher to ask if I would be interested in setting up a few hives within the school grounds.
A great deal of reading, the tracking down of risk assessments, and a charm offensive on reluctant colleagues has followed. In the autumn when the school held a Freshers’ Fayre, an observation hive (a portable glass hive) full of bees made an appearance among the more usual sports, music, art and drama clubs. Initially the membership of the group was limited to Year Seven and Twelve – this has become more flexible (due to the interest of siblings).
Since September I have run a weekly meeting that has covered the theory of beekeeping. We have covered topics such as: the life cycle of the bee, the Queen, swarming, history of beekeeping, and types of beehive. We have future sessions planned with the school nurse on bee stings and anaphylactic shock. We have discussed the safety clothing worn by beekeepers and how to stay safe around beehives. The beehives will be located in a quiet and secluded part of the school grounds, and only the beekeeping club members will have access. We will be delivering assemblies to the school community on the activities of the club and issuing a few safety notices including what to do if you see a swarm of bees! It will be important to stress that the presence of the two hives in school should not lead to people seeing any more bees than normal around school (bees tend to travel away from their hives) and that the bees will not pose any danger if the hives are left alone.
Last week we secured funding from the Science Faculty STEM fund for the initial set up (two hives and basic equipment). Over the coming months we will be approaching the school Parents’ Association and other bodies for funding. The club hopes to become self-sustaining in time through the sale of honey.
The chance for students to manage a school apiary will allow students to engage in a truly fascinating and rewarding hobby. It is a hobby that forces you to become aware of your surroundings through the importance of understanding the effect of the seasons, local ecology, and a whole host of other factors that affect the hive. It is also a hobby that encourages patience, respect for nature, and is frequently the cause of amazement.
Our next steps:
- To build the hives from the flat pack parts that will arrive in school shortly.
- To clear the apiary area and to make it suitable and safe for beekeeping.
- To further educate the group members.
- To taste our own school honey…
Things we have learnt:
- Most fear of bees is the result of a lack of knowledge – educate people about bees as much as you can.
- The promise of honey can win most people over.
- Don’t store your wax frames in the staffroom unless, as in our staffroom, teachers are too busy to notice the subsequent wax moth larvae creeping across the floor. We think we got away with this (one upside of a heavy workload).
The ever so important risk assessment:
This is a very
comprehensive risk assessment for the activity. It is produced by
CLEAPSS, who support practical Science and Technology in schools.
Other beekeeping schools:
These articles refer to schools that already keep bees.
http://www.urbanbees.co.uk/gallery/Sir_John_Cass_Primary_School_bees/index.htm http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/mortarboard/2011/aug/30/beekeeping-in-schools http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/14968530 http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/news/buzz_as_ormiston_victory_academy_costessey_moves_into_beekeeping_1_786225 http://www.dragonschool.org/preparatory-school/about-us/school-life/green-dragons/498-beekeeping.html http://www.sustainweb.org/news/bee_competition/
I hope to post at the Hodder Geography Nest again, later in the year, giving you an update on our school beekeeping project and will take some photos for
@HodderGeography to tweet. If you're interested in setting up a beekeeping club at your school, do get in touch.
Daniel Hugill
* Quote from Readicker-Henderson, E. (2009)
A short history of the honey bee: humans, flowers, and bees in the eternal chase for honey (Portland, Timber Press)
Photos © Daniel Hugill and the
Telling the bees blog.