THERE'S a buzz in the air around Keighley and South Craven.

Yorkshire Water, in partnership with the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, is improving habitats across the region for bees and other pollinators.

And as part of the Bee Together project, more than a dozen 'wildlife patches' have been created in Keighley, Steeton and Lothersdale.

The patches are designed to act as pathways linking wildlife areas and providing wildflowers.

As well as boosting wildflower sites, the project is also focussing on education.

Training is being provided to community groups and to Yorkshire Water teams on how to make mini meadows to support bees, ways of identifying different species and methods of encouraging pollinators to visit gardens.

Yasmina Gallagher, for Yorkshire Water, said: "Our primary role of managing water catchment naturally leads to work to improve biodiversity and boost conservation efforts.

"The partnership with the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust is already delivering results at our sites and for communities in our region.

"As well as work to enhance our sites and community meadows, our colleagues will also be volunteering their time to carry out pollinator surveys, create action plans and deliver the habitat that the bees require to thrive in our area."