Spring Convention

Lancashire & North West Beekeepers Spring Convention 2026

7th March 2026

PRESTON GOLF CLUB, Fulwood Hall Lane, Fulwood, Preston, PR2 8DD   

Tickets include a hot lunch and unlimited refreshments all day

Early bird purchase before 28th February 2026 only £20. After that date £25.

Under 18s free

9am registration and refreshments

9.30 opening remarks

9.35am. Trees and Bees an ancient partnership Richard Rickitt

Bees and trees – an ancient partnership 
An ancient and close relationship with trees has greatly influenced the evolution and geographic distribution of honey bees. This talk reveals how trees enabled bees to colonise the British Isles and the ways in which people living here perhaps first interacted with and exploited honey bees, eventually becoming beekeepers. The talk looks at what trees provide for bees including cavities in which to nest and various essential resources, and how the relationship can work both ways. It concludes with a look at some of the most useful UK species of trees for honey bees including those worth planting in the garden and a rundown of trees that can flower for bees in every month of the year.

10.45am Refreshments

11.15am Lecture Honey bee Nutrition  Lesley Jaques Master Beekeeper, Cheshire

Nutrition is a basic biological need for all living creatures, and for our bees it is a pre-requisite for a healthy and productive colony. Carbohydrates provide bees with the energy for flight, movement and heat, while protein, fats, vitamins and minerals are needed for the growth, function and development of the colony. 

This talk will cover the importance of different nutrients to both individual bees and to the colony and will look at the nutrition available throughout the year as well as supplemental feeding, the different types of feed required and when and how to use them.

12.30pm Hot Lunch

Options are Beef hot pot or Cheese and Onion pie, followed by Apple Crumble

1.45pm Presentations and Raffle

2.30pm Refreshments

2.45pm From Buckfast to Buckingham Palace Richard Rickitt

As the title suggests, the talk begins at Buckfast Abbey and ends at Buckingham Palace but there are many and varied locations in between- ranging from bees on the roof of Manchester Cathedral to hives in the militarised zone of Salisbury Plain. You will meet BKs who keep bees in skeps and those who keep them in enormous glasshouses to pollinate fruit. You will rediscover the first recorded drone congregation sites and an apiary location of a preeminent Victorian BK. This is a roving beekeeping adventure.

4pm Close

Stalls include Northern bee books, Heritage Wild Flowers, Viki’s cosmetics.

To book your place please use this form:  https://forms.gle/BU7XJ4FeXd3WWsCP8

Photos from the 2020 event

Photos from the 2019 event

Photos taken by Simon Cordingley

Photos from the 2013 event

2013 Photos taken by Caroline Mackenzie