MEMBERSHIP GUIDE – High Weald Beekeepers Association
- The membership year runs from the 1st October to 30th September.
- Membership fees will be shown on the current Membership Application.
- Membership fees are due on the 1st of October each year. After 6 weeks
from this date membership with both the High Weald Beekeepers’
Association (HWBKA) and the British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) will be
cancelled. - Reminders for renewal will be sent out during September each year. New
members should be aware that this applies to them too regardless of when in
the year they joined the Association. - All Bee Disease Insurance (BDI) will expire on the 31st of December in
that membership year. If members have not renewed by that date they will
not be covered for disease risks after the 31st December. Any membership
renewed after the 31st of December will have a lapse of 40 days before the
BDI becomes active. - Late payment of membership fees will be subject to a £5 re-joining fee,
which will be payable at the time of renewal. - Payment may be made by cheque or direct bank transfer.
- FULL MEMBERSHIP:
Full Membership entitles the member to attend and take part in all HWBKA
activities, AGM/EGMs, educational and social events. Each Full Member will
also be registered with the BBKA and be entitled to attend and vote at the
annual BBKA AGM and any other event organised by them. They will also
receive the magazine, BBKA News, and BDI for up to 3 colonies (N.B. further
colonies may be insured at extra cost). Full Membership also includes the
main member’s partner and up to two children under the age of 16 FOR
SOCIAL EVENTS ONLY (such as Bee Banter, the Christmas Social etc. - please
check if you are unsure). Only the Full Member has membership of the BBKA.
The Full Member will also receive an electronic copy of the Wealden
Apiarist. Voting rights during HWBKA AGM/EGMs are for the Full Member
only. - PARTNER MEMBERSHIP:
Partner Membership entitles a Full Member’s partner or relative,
living at the same address, to full membership of HWBKA and the BBKA
together with all BBKA voting rights. Please note that the Partner Member
will not receive a copy of the BBKA magazine (there is one copy per
household) and there is no BDI cover with this membership. If the Partner
Member has colonies attributed to their membership, then they will need to
be covered by additional BDI if both the Full Member and Partner Member
have more than a total of 3 colonies. An electronic copy of the Wealden
Apiarist is included. Partner Membership includes full voting rights at the
HWBKA AGM/EGMs. There can only be one Partner Member per household. - JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP:
Junior Membership entitles a young person under the age of 18 to
membership of the HWBKA and the BBKA (but not voting rights of the BBKA),
BDI is not normally included but can be arranged (at extra cost).
and the BBKA magazine and Wealden Apiarist. Junior Membership includes the
right to vote at HWBKA AGM/EGMs. - ASSOCIATE/SOCIAL MEMBER:
Associate / Social Members are entitled to attend all HWBKA events and
will receive a copy of the Wealden Apiarist only. This is for people who
are either already a member of the BBKA through another County Association,
or those without bees who wish to join us and learn more. There are no
HWBKA AGM/EGM voting rights with this membership. - BEE DISEASE INSURANCE
BDI runs from 1st January to 31st December. Full Membership
includes BDI for up to 3 hives. Should a member have more than 3 colonies
(or hives) then an additional premium will need to be paid. Members should
have insurance to cover ALL hives/colonies, including nuclei. Failure to
insure the full number of hives/colonies will render any claim invalid.
Additional insurance can be purchased at any time by contacting the
Treasurer. Partner Membership does not include any BDI. Full details of BDI
cover can be found on the BBKA Website. A summary of cover is printed on
members BDI certificates. All BDI certificates are sent electronically and
should be kept safely/printed out and produced in the event of a claim. - EVENTS and MEETINGS
As a group the HWBKA holds regular meetings and events around the
subject of beekeeping. Regular talks, apiary visits, social meetings and
practical demonstrations are held throughout the year. Most of these are
free, but some may carry a small fee to cover materials or speakers. - HIRE of EQUIPMENT and LIBRARY
Membership allows the hire of certain items of equipment from the
association for a small fee and refundable deposit (e.g. honey extractor),
and also to borrow books from the HWBKA library for a deposit. - APIARY and TRAINING
The HWBKA has an apiary site which is available for members to use, by
prior arrangement with the apiary Manager, as a temporary ‘out
apiary’ to facilitate moving bees in the active season. The
Association runs a course for beginners each year as well as sessions for
more experienced members. A 'Topical Tips' email is sent to all members at
various times during the active season to remind members of important
activities that should be done. - WEALDEN APIARIST
The HWBKA produces a magazine entitled the Wealden Apiarist. This will
generally contain details of future events, reports on previous events, and
any notices or articles that are of interest. Articles are always welcomed
by the editor. The magazine is emailed to all members. It is also available
to download from the HWBKA website. - SWARM LIST
The HWBKA maintains a list of members who would like to collect swarms
of bees that are reported to our Swarm Coordinators. - COMMUNICATIONS
In order to keep costs and time to a minimum all communications are done
by email. Please ensure that the Membership Secretary is informed of any
change of email address. - DATA PROTECTION
Members details will be held on computer and may be distributed to
committee members of the HWBKA for communication between members. Details
will also be passed to the BBKA and also the Animal and Plant Health
Agency's (APHA) National Bee Unit (BeeBase) to validate BDI and public
liability insurance and also so that members can receive the BBKA magazine.
This will also enable the Seasonal Bee Inspector to contact members with
information regarding potential outbreaks or bee related issues. Please
note that members details will not be sold on or used for any other
purpose. Should a member wish to opt out of their details being passed to
BeeBase then they should ensure that their wishes are communicated to the
Membership Secretary. Please note that in the event of a major disease
outbreak (or Hive Beetle etc.) any members who have opted out of BeeBase
are required to give their details by law and we will have to pass them
onto the Bee Inspector.Full details of the association’s General Data Protection
Regulation privacy policy are available on request or can be read or
downloaded from the website. - MEMBERSHIP FEE INCREASES
The Committee of the HWBKA reserve the right to increase the membership
fee for new members or at renewal for existing members, should at any time
the BBKA or the BDI raise their fees. Only proposed increases in the
portion of the membership fee due to the HWBKA will be put to the AGM for
voting.
Updated: November 2018
This document is also downloadable as a printable pdf from here: Membership Guide-2018-2019