The Basic Assessment and Improvers Course

The Basic Assessment

The Basic Assessment is an optional short test of of your beekeeping skills and gives you the confidence that you have learnt enough to take care of a colony of bees on your own. There is a particular emphasis on being able to recognise the symptoms of the more important bee diseases and know what to do about them. The L&DBKA recommends that all members take the Basic Assessment. If you wish to go on to study for other BBKA qualifications you must pass the Basic Assessment first.

The Basic Assessment is conducted by an external BBKA Examiner and will usually take place at our Association Apiary. It combines a practical test of being able to manipulate a colony of bees with an oral test of beekeeping principles. It is not a difficult test as it is only necessary to achieve a pass mark of 50%. But the test is in four sections and it is necessary to achieve the pass mark in each section.

If you have had basic training in beekeeping and have kept one or more colonies of bees for at least one season and would like to take the basic assessment, please get in touch with the Training Group using this contact form: Training Enquiry

Note: that the fee for our beginners course Introduction to Beekeeping includes the Improvers Course and taking the optional Basic Assessment in the following year.

Improvers Course

The next step from our Introduction to Beekeeping course is our Improvers Course, which is a series of theory and practical sessions reviewing briefly all the topics covered by the beginners course to support your completion of the Basic Assessment. The course aims to ensure that you have the skills and beekeeping knowledge to look after a colony of bees on your own.

The Improvers Course is included in the fee for the beginners course, but if you have not attended the Introduction to Beekeeping course, have already had basic level of training and kept a colony of bees for at least one season, then you can join this course in preparation for taking The Basic Assessment (for a chargeable fee).

If you are interested in this course, please contact the Training Team using the Training Enquiry form.