Winter Study Groups 2026 – 2027

The CBKA winter study groups will be running again at the end of this year and into 2027. The sessions are based on the syllabuses for the BBKA Module Examinations. These syllabuses can be found on the BBKA website, or contact Lesley Jacques (lesley.jacques@me.com) who will send you one.

Each course will consist of about nine sessions, beginning in October/November 2026 and ending in February/March 2027 in time for people to prepare to sit the examination if they so wish. The spring module exams will be held on 20^th March. Please note there is absolutely no pressure on people to take the exam, nor any expectation that they should do so.

The Study Groups are open to any member of Cheshire Beekeepers’ Association who has at least two years’ experience of keeping bees. We expect that most sessions will be held over Zoom, thereby allowing members from across the county to participate without the need for sometimes lengthy journeys on winter evenings. In order to participate fully, participants will need a PC, laptop or tablet equipped with a webcam and microphone. The Zoom interface is easy to use and the tutors will typically send out links to the various sessions in good time.

Study groups take place in the evening at roughly fortnightly intervals, with dates confirmed nearer the time by individual tutors.

There may be a small charge to cover costs of materials, Zoom license etc.

Study Group Module 1 – Honey Bee Management

This study group will be led by Josh Hampson and will cover the following:

• Advising beginners, siting of apiaries and apiary hygiene;
• Hives, frames, spacing and foundation;
• The year’s work in the apiary;
• Feeding honeybees and the value of nectar, pollen, water and propolis to the colony;
• Swarming and control of swarming;
• Nuclei – the various uses of nucleus colonies and how to make them up;
• Queenlessness, drone-laying queens and laying workers;
• Bee-stings.

For further details, contact Josh directly at joshuajamesh@gmail.com, or Tel: 07793 433437

Study Group Module 5 – Honey Bee Biology

This study group will be led by Lesley Jacques and will cover the following:

• How bees eat and digest;
• The excretory system;
• The respiratory system;
• The circulatory system;
• The nervous system;
• The reproductive system;
• The various glands and their functions;
• The development of the egg, larva, pupa and adult bee;
• The anatomy of the honeybee;
• The castes and how they develop;
• Pheromones and their roles;
• How the bee stings;
• How the bee flies.

For further details, contact Lesley directly at Lesley.jacques@me.com, or Tel: 07788 744086

Study Group Module 6 – Honey Bee Behaviour

This study group will be led by Chris Cornwell-Lee and will cover the following:

• The stages of life and various roles of the worker;
• Swarming behaviour;
• Decision-making by the colony;
• Learning behaviour;
• Mating behaviours of the queen and drone;
• The role of pheromones in the colony;
• Social organisation;
• Methods of communication between honey bees;
• Behaviours associated with defence, foraging, swarming and nest construction;
• The effects of pests and pathogens.

For further details, contact Chris directly at chris.cornwell-lee@hotmail.co.uk, or Tel: 07584 035360

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If you have any questions about any of the above courses, or if you have suggestions for other training that CBKA could organise, please feel free to contact Lesley Jacques (contact details as above) – suggestions are always welcome!