Dear Mr Thirsk,
I am delighted with my garden bench which arrived within 36hrs of order and was very well packed the assembly time was a bit optimistic but with the help of my daughter (she did most of the work) we finally succeeded.
I noticed the bench will require treating what do you recommend and what colour or is it clear.
Yours.
Pat
Good evening I hope well.
Thank you again for your order, a lovely bench.
Sounds like your daughter really helped out, that’s really nice.
At the moment there is no need to stain, however in time it is worth looking after and staining will really help.
Here is the advice we usually give:-
For aftercare, please just apply a water based wood stain (colour of your choice), or just natural, you can purchase from any good DIY store. Wash your bench down with some soapy water, rinse off, dry, no need to sand (however you can give a gentle sand if necessary) and then just slosh the stain on with a rag or brush, it takes just minutes to do this. Ideally do this before a hot summer and again before the winter especially if keeping outside. If you do this your bench will remain looking new and fresh. Possibly worth applying some now.
I hope this helps.
Enjoy the rest of  day and take care.
Regards
Ian
