See www.vaserv.com for up-to-date service status reports.

Vaserv was affected by security issues in a piece of software it used to manage servers. Vaserv was the company used to host the Southport Beekeepers' websites.

The current situation indicates probable data loss, unfortunately. This means that the website will be unavailable for an indeterminate amount of time. Some emails from immediately before the server went down may also be lost. Backups were taken regularly but it remains to be seen whether they will be useful.

I'm sorry for the inconvenience this might cause.

The text of the website can be found by navigating the site as below, for the time being.

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Welcome to the Web site of the Southport Branch of the Lancashire and North-West Beekeepers' Association

 

Me_with_Bill_Turnbull_-_Stoneleigh_09

Our Secretary, Francine, with BBC Breakfast presenter, and beekeeper, Bill Turnbull.

This site is written by beekeepers for everyone. It is all about the Southport, Formby and surrounding area branch of the Lancashire and North West Beekeepers' Association.

 

Our recent Beekeping for Beginners course was a huge success.  Have a look in the Past Meetings section on the left to see more info and pictures.

Our branch forms part of the Lancashire & North West Beekeepers' Association, itself part of the British Beekeeping Association. We are well known as a friendly branch, and hold regular meetings throughout the year, many of which offer the opportunity to open up a beehive and observe the activities inside. We aim to educate and support newcomers to the craft of beekeeping, and endeavour to always be on hand to offer help and advice. We can also offer a mentoring service to our new members.

Annual membership to the branch, which includes membership of the BBKA, and BDI insurance cover for up to 3 colonies costs £20 for a registered member. There are several other categories of membership such as partner members, country members, and additional or junior members. Further details about membership costs and a membership application form can be found on the information pages of the website.

We beekeepers keep honey-bees (Apis mellifera) not bumble-bees (Bombus). Honey-bees, unlike bumble-bees and wasps, survive as a full colony through the winter and just become dormant with very little flying and foraging.

Unfortunately honey-bees are often mistaken for wasps, and killed. This becomes a problem when a colony of bees living in someone's roof is exterminated.

Beekeeping as a hobby is rapidly increasing in popularity following a recent surge of interest, but we always need new recruits to this fascinating craft.


Enjoying the first day of spring sunshine!