Wasp colonies have a 1 year life cycle, the queen will start the cycle by constructing the start of the nest with about 30 cells and then laying eggs into these cells. Once the eggs have hatched and the wasp grubs have metamorphosised into young worker wasps the queen will resort to egg laying duties only. The wasps then take care of building new cells and expanding the nest

Wasp colonies in the UK, including common (Vespula vulgaris) and German wasps (Vespula germanica), have a hierarchical structure:

Queen: The sole reproductive female, managing the colony and laying eggs. Lifespan: Up tp 1 year. The queen will be produced around September, hibernate and emerge April/May to start constructing a new nest. She in turn will produce new queens and drones for the following year before she dies.

Workers:  All worker wasps are sterile females responsible for foraging and caring for the young. Lifespan: 2-4 weeks.  New workers are produced far faster than the lifespan allowing the nest to grow quickly.

Drones: Males are produced the same time as future queens. Their only purpose is to mate with queens from other nests, they do not contribute to the nest in any way. Once mated the drone will die

Lifespan: 2 to 3 weeks.

At season's end, the colony dies off, except for future queens that will start new colonies / nests in late spring.

Wasps will never use an old nest, the queen will always start her own nest, however they can build new nests right next to old nests and use the same entry points giving the appearance that wasps have come back. This will always be a new nest.