Harrogate and Ripon Beekeepers Association operates Swarmsearch, which is a free service run by volunteers for the collection of honeybee swarms in the area covered by the association – roughly the rectangle defined by Skipton in the west, Green Hammerton in the east, Leeds in the south and Northallerton in the north.
If you encounter a swarm of honeybees in a public place or one settles on your property, please in the first instance try to confirm that it is indeed a honeybee swarm by looking at the guide on the British Beekeepers Association website. Once you have identified that it is a honeybee swarm, please contact the Swarmsearch co-ordinator on 07826 307 306. The Swarmsearch co-ordinator will then be able to put you in touch with a beekeeper close to the location of the swarm to enable you to arrange for the swarm to be collected.
If the honeybee swarm is on private land, the attending beekeeper will need the permission of the landowner in order to retrieve the swarm.
Our neighbouring beekeeping associations also operate swarm collection services. They may be better placed to help if the swarm is located closer to their area of coverage: