Schoolchildren set to bee inspired

A Darlington-based community group is set to welcome more local schoolchildren.

The Darlington Beekeepers Association is using a £7000 grant from the OnPath Energy Moor House Wind Farm community benefits fund to install a solar power battery system at its main apiary in the Denes. 

The upgrade will power the Association’s welfare unit, allowing it to host school groups from outside the immediate area and cover transport costs for the visits.

Next spring, children from communities near the wind farm will be visiting the apiary as the bees come out of hibernation.

Richard Bond, committee member at the Darlington Beekeepers Association, said: “Education is a central part of the work that our members undertake and we’ve welcomed many groups from nearby schools in the past who’ve been fascinated by the lives and behaviours of our bees.

“We’ve been looking at ways to extend this work, but without a power supply in our welfare unit, we wouldn’t be able to offer the bathroom and refreshment facilities that we need to welcome school groups from further afield.

“Installing the solar power battery system solves this problem in an environmentally-suitable way and we’re now speaking to several schools around the Moor House Wind Farm about paying us a visit in the spring.

“With their budgets always being under pressure, being able to also help these schools cover their transport costs is an added benefit for everyone.

“Previous support from the Moor House Wind Farm Community Fund has helped us develop our educational work and we’re very grateful for their assistance with furthering our drive to raise awareness of the importance of these amazing creatures even more widely.”

Founded in 2012, the Darlington Beekeepers Association has more than 70 members, each completing a two-season British Beekeeping Association training course under a Master Beekeeper. 

Members gain hands-on experience in managing hives while learning the skills needed to care for the bees responsibly.

Alongside maintaining their hives, the Association works to educate the wider public about the critical role honey bees and other pollinators play in the natural environment, highlighting what can be done to protect and encourage local pollinator populations.

This is the second time the Association has benefited from the fund, following a £1971 grant in 2021 that supported the creation of over a dozen new hives on the wind farm site.

Tom Chaplin, partnership and community manager at OnPath Energy, added: “The Darlington Beekeepers Association make a very important contribution to the well-being of the local environment and to biodiversity across Darlington and beyond.

“We’re very pleased to be extending our support for their work and to be helping them share their knowledge with even more young people across the area.”

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