About us

We set up Urban Bees to share our passion for bees, to make cities better for bees and to connect people to nature.

In the beginning, we kept beehives on corporate rooftops to teach people about bees. Now, we work with companies and organisations to create and maintain habitat for wild, solitary bees and to engage and educate their staff through bee-related activities about the wonders of nature and the small steps they can take to help bees and other pollinators thrive.

We are Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum.

Co-founder

Alison Benjamin

Co-founder

Alison is a journalist and bee advocate. After a 20-year career at The Guardian, she completed a City & Guilds in Professional Horticulture at Capel Manor and now focuses on creating and maintaining bee-friendly gardens. She also writes a monthly bee newsletter, gives talks about bees and how to help them, and develops partnerships to improve forage and habitat for pollinators in towns and cities.

She was part of the team that designed the award-winning King's Cross Bee Trail App and helped create a solitary bee garden at the 2018 RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Co-founder

Brian McCallum

Co-founder

Brian is a qualified teacher and former seasonal bee inspector for the government's National Bee Unit. He has trained scores of urban beekeepers and delivered many rooftop hive sessions. Now, he uses his design and practical skills to make and install bee hotels, bee observation boxes and sand mounds for wild, solitary bees.

Brian and Alison have co-authored a number of bee books including Keeping Bees and Making Honey, A World Without Bees, and The Good Bee.

Alison's TEDx Talk

Watch Alison's talk at TEDxWarwick on bees, cities, and why urban nature matters.