Information for Non Beekeepers Where to go for help and advice If you require any information or help with honeybees please contact the Division closest to you. This should ensure your enquiry is dealt with quickly. The majority of beekeepers are amateurs, and like everybody else are busy during the active beekeeping season. It may be that your enquiry could be answered more quickly by doing a little research yourself, and the obvious place is the web where there is a lot of information available. If you are thinking of becoming a beekeeper and need more information then contact one of the WSBKA Divisions.

Information for Beekeepers

Membership

Membership of WSBKA is through one of the WSBKA Divisions.  This also provides membership to the British Beekeepers' Association (BBKA) with all the entitlements and benefits of membership including Public and Products Liability insurance and Bee Disease Insurance through BDI.  If you need further information on these then either check on the web or contact your Divisional Treasurer.

Training

The vast majority of teaching will be done at your own Division and you are encouraged to take part in events as much as you can.  Beekeeping is not about having a beehive in the garden as a talking point or something to look at, but is a craft that now needs beekeepers to be much more knowledgeable than their forebears were. There are currently many problems affecting bees that need quick identification and a sound knowledge in order to deal with them. The failure to deal with these problems could quickly result in a dead colony.

There are two elements to learning beekeeping, firstly the understanding of what is happening inside a colony, and secondly the practical side where that information is used. The former is all factual and can be gleaned from a variety of sources, and the latter is gained by experience and watching others. A local BKA has a role to play in all teaching, and beekeepers are encouraged to take advantage of the facilities on offer.

The BBKA has a good Examination & Assessment System, starting with the Basic Assessment. This is suitable for those who have been keeping bees for a year or so. The syllabus can be downloaded and although the content may seem daunting the studying of the items will make you a much more knowledgeable beekeeper. Initial contact for those wishing to take exams is through your own Division.

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