Contents
Notice of AGM 12th June at 7:30pm
BIBBA CIO Progress
Trustee Changes
Conference 2023
Commercial & Semi-Commercial
One Day Queen Rearing Courses
Members may recall that at our 2021 AGM, it was agreed that the Trustees would investigate the conversion of the existing Charity to a CIO. At the 2022 AGM the Trustees brought forward proposals based on a Draft CIO Constitution. This was approved unanimously, subject to all Members receiving a copy of the final version of the CIO Constitution before it was submitted to the Charity Commission. This was circulated in June 2022 and was approved by the Charity Commission last November.
We now have approval to transfer the assets to the new CIO and this should occur shortly. "Old BIBBA" will then be wound up and all members will become members of the new CIO, charity registration no 1200969.
The whole process has taken more time than anticipated and we have slipped in production of BIBBA Monthly.
What's Happening With the AGM?
We are required to hold the first AGM of the new CIO within 18 months of it's approval date of 10th November 2022.
We had hoped to wind up "Old BIBBA" by now, as there would be no need to hold an AGM. However, with the delay in getting approval to transfer the assets, we need a short AGM to keep the old organisation ticking over until the final changeover takes place. AGM notice here
Farewell to Two Trustees
Selwyn Runnett has stepped down as a trustee after guiding us through the approval process for the new CIO and setting up the outline framework for our sustainability programme.
Richard Senior is stepping down at the end of May after two and a half years of intense input, most obviously in ensuring the smooth operation of the webinars. He was instrumental in setting up Live@theHive and beekeeping.events and also took on the role of secretary.
We thank them for their invaluable contribution and wish them both well for the future.
New Trustees
The committee have co-opted three new trustees, who will be in place until they stand for election at the first AGM of the new CIO. Jo Widdicombe has taken over as chair.
Lynn Cartwright has taken on the role of Events Support and is working with Roger Patterson in setting up the conference.
Lynn lives on a small ‘ small holding’ in the Staffordshire Moorlands 900' above sea level and has kept bees since the 1980’s. She has 15 colonies and raises her own queens, producing dark mongrels who seem well adapted to the local climate.
Gareth Trehearn has come on board to manage social media and to oversee our YouTube channel.
Gareth has kept bees for five years and now manages around 100 hives in and around the South Manchester area. He is passionate about rearing locally adapted bees and is proud to have never bought imported bees.
Karl Colyer has been helping out with book publications since he stepped down two years ago and we are delighted to have him back as a trustee.
Karl has been keeping bees since 2003. He enjoys building his own hives from recycled wood where he can and is a very practical and hands-on bee breeder, using his engineering, quality and production experience.
Supporting Practical Beekeeping
BIBBA Conference 2023 will be held in Carmarthen on Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd September.
Super Early Bird discount only available until the end of May
Provisional Topics for the September Conference
Do you sell or plan to sell bees, honey and/or hive products?
BIBBA has started an initiative to provide help for small-scale beekeepers, who are selling, or plan to sell their hive products on a regular basis. In effect, supporting what are called semi-commercial, that is, they make part of their income from their bees. This is called CaSCA, which is the acronym of “Commercial and Semi-Commercial Apiarists”.
There are many beekeepers who move up through the gears by expanding their hobby from a few hives in the garden to 10, 20 or more. It is thought that about 12-15% of beekeepers in England and Wales keep 10-39 colonies, so an important sector. They often find there is little support, as local BKAs aren’t usually geared up for them, and they are considered too small for the professional body - the Bee Farmers Association (BFA). Of the existing beekeeping organisations, we believe BIBBA, who already has many members in this group, is well placed to provide help and support that may be needed.
The key question is what can BIBBA offer small-scale semi-commercial beekeepers? The answer will vary depending on the needs of the beekeepers, but there are likely to be some common threads. Such areas may include:
- Helping beekeepers taking their first expansion steps
- Providing help to plan further expansion
- Appropriate colony and business management techniques
- Knowledge exchange
Plans are already in progress to stage a few practical days during the summer and a few indoor sessions next winter, specifically targeting the needs of the semi-commercial beekeeper, or those looking to expand.
BIBBA believes that by supporting this group of semi-commercial beekeepers, we can better support all beekeepers in the UK. So, if you are a beekeeper that sells hive products, or plans to, on a regular basis, irrespective of the number of colonies you have and are interested in learning, helping others, or just investigating, then please take a little time to fill in the brief form to register your interest, so we can set up a group and send information as it becomes available. It will also give us an indication of the requirements to help you.
Roger Patterson
Queen Rearing and Bee Improvement -One Day Practicals 2023
BIBBA are committed to helping beekeepers to improve their bees and those of the surrounding area, by raising queens from their better colonies and culling the poorer ones.
Bee Improvement should be of interest to all beekeepers and for a number of reasons including temper, quietness on the combs and suitability to the locality.
The queen is an important factor in the characteristics of a colony, so colony assessment and queen selection need more attention than many beekeepers give them. This does mean rearing queens, but the bees give us many opportunities during the summer to raise new queens with little effort needed by us.
This course is organised to help and encourage beekeepers to improve their bees, using simple techniques without the need for specialist equipment.
These courses are NOT for beginners; you must be competent at handling bees