Dandara Makes a Buzz with Donations for World Bee Day

To celebrate World Bee Day and help provide suitable nesting sites for bees, local housebuilder Dandara has donated ‘bee hotels’ to Kirkliston Primary School, Treetops Nursery, Carrick Knowe Primary School, Edinburgh Girl Guides and Dunblane Kids Club, close to a number of its developments. 

With over 20,000 species of bee known worldwide*, World Bee Day serves to raise awareness of the importance of pollinators, the threats they face and their contribution to sustainable development.  

As not all bee species make and live in colonies, bee hotels offer a safe shelter in which solitary bees can lay their eggs. These bee hotels donated by Dandara will be installed in the school and groups gardens, providing nesting sites for bees across Edinburgh and The Lothians. 

Tony Williamson, Director of Sales at Dandara East Scotland commented: “Working with local organisations is important to us here at Dandara, so with World Bee Day having just taken place, it was a great opportunity to support the local community with bee hotel donations.

“With this year’s theme being ‘Bee engaged with Youth’, this campaign was a chance to encourage our next generation to develop their interest in beekeeping and pollinator conservation efforts.

“Dandara is committed to enhancing and maintaining local biodiversity, as reflected in our work towards providing a net biodiversity gain at all new developments. With around 35 species of bee currently under the threat of extinction, we hope this provision of shelter for bees in the local area will provide a fun and exciting way for people to learn about and help preserve biodiversity in their communities.” 

Karen Fisher, Childcare Manager at Dunblane Kids Club, said: “With the number of bees under threat, it is so important we start educating the next generation about endangered species. It is great that Dandara is encouraging this conversation about biodiversity and protected species, and we look forward to welcoming bees to our outdoor spaces”.

Michelle Nicholson, Head of Management at Treetops Nursery, Chapter One Childcare, added: “We are really pleased to have received the donation of the bee hotels and seed bombs from Dandara. The children really enjoyed hanging the bee hotels up and spreading pollinator friendly seed bombs in the garden.

“It is important the children get involved with our outdoor space and their gardens at home, as it’s a great way to learn about biodiversity and the importance of nature. We are looking forward to welcoming bees into our garden”.

For more information about World Bee Day and the importance of bees, visit https://www.un.org/en/observances/bee-day. 

To find out more about Dandara or the homes currently available in Edinburgh and The Lothians, please visit www.dandara.com/scotland.