Scheme aims to create bee friendly borough

The borough council said it was aiming to make Stafford and the surrounding area friendlier to bees

People are being asked to support a project to establish a bee friendly borough by sowing wildflower seeds and adding plants to areas to encourage the insects.

Volunteers in Stafford are hoping to create a better environment for bees and other insects.

The campaign, due to officially launch on Thursday, will start with schoolchildren placing nests for solitary bees, which they have made, around John Wheeldon Primary Academy, the borough council said.

The authority's plans also include encouraging more native flowers, shrubs and trees as well as reducing the use of pesticides in the area.

Community workshops, the creation of pollinator friendly areas in parks and the installation of bee hotels, nesting boxes and other shelters for the insects also form part of the scheme.

It is hoped the changes will help pollinating insects such as bumblebees, honeybees, solitary bees, hoverflies, wasps, and butterflies.

The group overseeing the plans said it was aiming to achieve "Bee Friendly" status from the national Bee Friendly Trust - an award that recognises areas which have carried out work to increase pollinators.