14 - 20 July 2025
We know that bees, and other pollinating insects, are an essential part of our environment and play a crucial role in food production.
In 2022 Horsham District Council, in partnership with the Friends of Horsham Park, was awarded a national Bees’ Needs Champion Award, recognising the extensive hard work undertaken in Horsham Park to provide food and home for pollinating insects. We are continuing this work, facilitating bee keeping on many of our sites and supporting our all-important insect pollinators through special planting regimes.
But we can all play our part in supporting these critical insects through taking simple actions in our own gardens.
FIVE simple actions that anyone can take to help pollinators
- Grow more nectar rich flowers, shrubs and trees. Using window or balcony boxes are good options if you don’t have a garden. Some of the best flowers for bees include lavender, sunflowers, borage, and foxgloves. Bees also love many herbs such as rosemary, thyme, and sage.
- Let patches of garden and land grow wild.
- Cut grass less often.
- Do not disturb insect nests and hibernation spots.
- Think carefully about whether to use pesticides.
Bees’ Needs Week is an annual event run by Defra, working with a range of organisations including conservation groups, businesses and charities.