The driving force behind Monmouth’s claim to be the world’s first bee town has been recognised in The Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Dr Nicola Bradbear has been awarded the MBE for her services to biodiversity after sharing her expertise and helping to catapult the town onto the national stage as a hotspot for people with expertise in bees, ecology, botany, pollinator-friendly garden design, and beekeeping with honey bees.

In 1993 Nicola founded the international charity Bees for Development, to promote beekeeping as a way for people across the world to create sustainable livelihoods and gain an incentive to restore biodiversity.

She made Monmouth its home 11 years ago in Agincourt Street and has worked with some of the world’s poorest people to help them benefit from bees in ways that are wholly sustainable.

Closer to home, she has worked with Monmouthshire Meadows as well as the county and town council’s to promote campaigns such as ‘Nature isn’t Neat’, introducing measures such as selective mowing of council-managed green spaces and verges.

Monmouth held its first bee festival in 2012 when broadcaster and beekeeper Bill Turnbull officially opened the new Bees for Development premises and launched the town’s Bee Festival.

Now it’s an annual event with workshops, activities and family fun including games, crafts, hands on beekeeping demos, willow weaving, face painting and fishing for bees.

This year, on Saturday July 2, private gardens around Monmouth will be open to the public and there will be activities for families at Two River Meadows.

Then the main event is on Sunday July 3 on Chippenham, sponsored by Mandarin Stone with free entertainment and ticketed workshops and there will be guided ‘bee walks’ around the Nelson Garden.

“We use the festival to raise funds and awareness about the importance of bees here in the UK and overseas” she said.

However, they learned last year that all their funding from the Overseas Aid has been axed so now they have to rely on public and corporate support to keep going.

Asked how she would like to see the next few years develop, she said that Abergavenny has its food festival and Hay has its books, “I would like to see us do the same and become a real event that brings lots of environmental groups under the same umbrella”.

Last year’s festival drew in 3,500 people so they are hiring toilets this year to cope with the numbers and have over 40 stalls as well as the main marquee where they will recreate their silver-winning Chelsea Flower Show stand to some extent.

“There will be food vendors and three coffee vendors so people can eat pizza and drink there while they learn all about bees,” she said.

She will be handing over the reins in two years time to spend more time writing. When asked about The Queen’s Birthday Honour she said, “you know what that stands for” she smiled, “More Bees Everywhere!”.