AN arts centre was a "hive of activity" to mark World Bee Day earlier this month - as well as to celebrate reopening the doors to the public after the national lockdown.

Pocklington Arts Centre (PAC) has installed a beehive on its roof, alongside its solar panels and the beginnings of a rooftop garden, in the hope of playing a part in helping to save the bees.

PAC director, Janet Farmer, said: “We are committed to seeking ways in which we can reduce our carbon footprint, while doing what we can to support the environment, so when one of our team mentioned he kept bees, we thought a hive would be the perfect addition to our flat roof, alongside our solar panels.

“We were really excited to have installed the hive and are now looking forward to seeing how it becomes established over the spring and summer months."

PAC chairperson of the management team, Paul Jennings, who is an avid amateur bee keeper at his home in Pocklington, has gifted one of his hives to the venue and will be keeping an eye on it as it becomes established potentially with up to 10,000 bees.

World Bee Day, which took place on May 20, was created by the United Nations with the aim of raising global public awareness around the importance of protecting and preserving bees and other pollinators.