The Examination Board for the National Diploma in Beekeeping was established in 1954, to meet a need for a beekeeping qualification, above the level of the Certificates awarded by the Beekeeping Associations.

It was originally intended as an appropriate qualification for County Beekeeping Instructors and Lecturers, of which there were some forty full- and part-time appointments across the United Kingdom at that time. The prime movers in this development were Fred Richards, the C.B.I. for Norfolk and H.M.I. Franklin, whose brief included rural education. Although the County Lecturers have disappeared from the beekeeping scene since the privatisation of the agricultural colleges, there are still beekeepers wishing to pursue their studies to an advanced level. The NDB offers them the opportunity to undertake such study.

The Board consists of representatives from a wide range of organisations and together form an impressive amalgam of expert knowledge in beekeeping and education. Although all the National Beekeeping Associations are represented on the Board and make a valuable contribution, the NDB is entirely independent of those organisations.

Board members are drawn from the following organizations:

The British, Scottish, Welsh and Ulster Beekeepers’ Associations.
The FERA National Bee Unit.
Bee Farmers’ Association.
International Bee Research Association.
Bees for Development.
Current NDB Board members

The President of the NDB Board is Geoff Hopkinson NDB.

The current Board Members are:

Dr. Ivor Davis NDB, Chairman
Ken Basterfield NDB, Director, Advanced Course
Dr. Nicola Bradbear, Bees for Development
Michael Brown, FERA National Bee Unit
Clive de Bruyn NDB, Bee Farmers’ Association
Norman Carreck, I.B.R.A.
Ian Craig, Scottish B.K.A.
John Hendrie, B.B.K.A.
Paul Metcalf NDB, Co-opted member
Dinah Sweet, Welsh B.K.A.
Margaret Thomas NDB, Secretary
Dr. Ivor Davis NDB, Treasurer
Constitution

The NDB Constitution is available for download read more

Past awards

The recipients of the National Diploma in Beekeeping are listed on a separate page read more

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