Are beehives the next workplace wellbeing trend?

In a bid to support employee wellbeing, some UK employers are going well beyond free gym memberships and fruit bowls. As reported by The Guardian, companies across the UK are working with professional beekeepers to install beehives at their offices. 

While some might baulk at the prospect of sharing the office with a colony of bees, the initiative is designed to reduce stress, build community and reconnect staff with nature. Demand for unusual workplace wellness schemes is rising, as employers look for more meaningful ways to fight burnout and disengagement, especially among hybrid workplaces. 

In support of beehives specifically, advocates say that the shared responsibility for maintaining the fragile living ecosystem creates a calm sense of focus and collective purpose that more conventional HR perks may fail to deliver.

Beehives and other ‘off-piste’ wellbeing ideas

Office apiaries are just one example of a growing list of unconventional workplace wellness initiatives. They sit alongside everything from cold water plunging and forest bathing to sound healing, breathwork workshops, and digital detox retreats. 

While some might view these as more niche practices, they often share a common thread: creating distance from screens, encouraging presence and togetherness, and offering something symbolic and memorable rather than purely transactional.

Emma Buckley, chief executive of Buckley’s Bees, a provider of office beehives, said: “Our motivation is improving people’s mental health, which employers increasingly understand is closely linked to nature.” 

And this approach clearly resonates with businesses adopting hives. Phillip Potts, general manager of Park House on London’s Oxford Street, told The Guardian: “A gym discount or fruit bowl is nice, but the bees create a shared story and a sense of stewardship.”

However, while such initiatives may work well for larger organisations with space and the budget for specialist partners, they’re likely to be impractical for small businesses.

In addition, beehives require professional care, suitable environments and careful consideration of environmental impact. From a biodiversity standpoint, conservation groups have warned that an influx of managed apiaries can also put pressure on fragile wild insect populations.

What small businesses can realistically learn from this trend

For SMEs, it may be less about rushing to hop onto the beehive bandwagon and more about understanding and gaining inspiration from why it resonates with employees. Then, you can explore more manageable ways to make a similar impact.

Clearly, initiatives that foster shared experiences and a reconnection with nature, as well as encouraging a sense of care, work well – especially when they interrupt the monotony of the working day.

Examples include protected time for non-work activities, team volunteering days, walking or outdoor meetings, creative lunchtime clubs, or rotating responsibility for something communal, such as a shared project or local cause. 

Crucially, many of these activities require little time and financial investment, but cultivate a sense of trust and intentionality in the workplace

Accessible wellbeing ideas that actually work

The office beehive trend is part of a broader shift towards wellbeing strategies that create meaningful space to breathe throughout the working day. 

But it’s important to note that while more symbolic wellness trends are legitimately beneficial, they shouldn’t replace tangible, and often essential, benefits such as healthcare plans, parental leave, and flexible working.

A combination of both practical and more thoughtful benefits hits the sweet spot. And the most effective benefits can often be the simple things that make work feel more human, such as minimised out-of-hours communication, meeting-free time, and simply giving employees more control over how work is done.