Bees

There are many reasons why we wanted the bees:

In the last 3 decades, the global biomass of flying insects has shrunk by 75% (Durham University).
Research has proven that under the right circumstances, insects can stimulate children’s curiosity, and can encourage them to explore the natural world (Kellert, 2012).
By providing the children with hands on experience with the bees, children can become critical thinkers through hands on engagement (Ernst et al. 2013).
Direct opportunities with bees help children to understand the link between the flowers around them and food that ends up on their plates (Yoori Cho & Dowon Lee 2018).
Research has also found that observing Honeybees closely, challenged and corrected children’s pre-conceptions about honeybees.

Over the last 2 years, Mrs Sage and Mrs Churchill have been training with the Bristol Beekeepers Association to enable them to be beekeepers.
In addition to this, Mrs Gregory will also be training with them as a beekeeper.
Tim Hewer from the Bristol Beekeepers Association will be our Beekeeper mentor for the next two years. We are lucky to be working with Tim as he has received a British Empire Medal (BEM) from the King for his services to Beekeeping.

Bees have a been integrated into our curriculum, meaning that the children will become experts on them and understand their importance to our world.
They will also be taught how to behave and react to bees when they come across them in the summer in and out of school.
The children in the older year groups will be: extracting the honey from the frames (not the hives); selling the honey and making beeswax candles.

The hives are behind a secure fence next to the raised beds.
We have extended the height of the fence to encourage the bees to fly up and forage the hedges, rather than flying out onto the fields.
We have also put a secondary fence up to separate the raised beds area from the playing fields, to allow the fruit and vegetables to grow, without the children playing in the raised beds at lunch time.
The bees have also been integrated into the curriculum meaning that the children will be taught how to behave and react to bees when they come across them inside and outside of school
Members of staff have visited the Oakgrove School in Milton Keynes (a Beacon School) to see their best practice.
Hives will only be inspected after school, and only once a week during the summer.
By having bees there is always the small potential risk of children getting stung. However, bees forage within a 3-mile radius and we have seen numerous honeybees in previous years around the school so this has always been a risk
In the unlikely event that a child does get stung and gets a reaction, you will be notified immediately and with your permission, we will administer antihistamine.

We will also be working with the British Beekeeping Association to become a Beacon School. Currently, there are only two Beacon Schools in the country and we want to be the third. One of the reasons for becoming a Beacon School, will allow the older children to become certified junior beekeepers.
However, this project is not just for the children, our long-term plan is to also hold a beekeeping club for parents/carers at the school as well. This way we can all be a part of this project!