Tissington is a hive of activity as 3,000 honey bees are safely removed
THOUSANDS of unusual visitors have been removed from an estate village near Ashbourne during the coronavirus lockdown.
Tissington Hall had to call in experts to help disperse around 3,000 honey bees from its roof space and safely relocate them as part of a project to carry out critical roof repairs.
The estate, managed by property consultancy firm Fisher German, called in Derby-based CSS Pest Services to carefully extract the bees, as well as the large amount of honey and wax they had created.
The removal will now enable the roof on the Grade Ii-listed hall to be re-pointed.
The work, which would ordinarily be funded by profits made from weddings and public openings, has been made possible after the estate received a £25,000 grant from Historic England’s Covid-19 Emergency Response Fund, which supports organisations that have been severely affected by the impact of coronavirus.
Sir Richard Fitzherbert, the owner of Tissington Hall and estate, said: “We have used the lockdown period as an opportunity to complete work on the estate, and when looking into the roof repairs we were extremely surprised to find we had received a visit from a swarm of around 3,000 bees.
“Fisher German sourced a company which safely extracted the bees ready to be rehomed and found that they had made several pounds of high-quality honey.”
The bee swarm’s eviction comes as Tissington’s unique independent businesses begin to fully reopen to the public following an easing of the lockdown restrictions on Saturday, with its holiday cottages and apartments now open to guests.
Herberts Tearooms, in the heart of the village, is also now reopening and will be offering a takeaway service on Wednesdays to Sundays from 11am to 4pm from today.
Although the hall will not be open for guided tours, the estate will be welcoming inquiries from those wishing to view it as a wedding venue.
Sir Richard said: “The lockdown period has had a huge impact on the hospitality industry, so we were extremely pleased to receive the grant from Historic England to support us in protecting such an important heritage asset.
“We also received a grant from the Office of Low Emission Vehicles to have an electric vehicle charging point installed – quite a unique feature for a Grade Ii-listed house.
“Tissington is highly popular with walkers and cyclists, so the reopening of Herberts Tearooms is extremely positive.
“We are also happy to say that the other village businesses are reopening as well, including Edward & Vintage Sweet Shop and On a Wick & a Prayer Candle shop.
“We hope that this along with all of the wonderful local walks and views attract plenty of visitors to the area.
“We are also expecting ‘staycations’ to become even more popular and have already received a number of bookings for our holiday cottages.”
To find out more visit www. tissingtonhall.co.uk