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Busy Bees Day Nursery at Maidstone Hospital

Ofsted: Good
(Apr 2022)
·
4.5(21 parent reviews) ·Maidstone Hospital, Hermitage Lane, Maidstone, ME16 9QQ · Kent
Number of places
112 places
Age range
0–4 yrs
Last inspected
Apr 2022
Local authority
Kent

About this day nursery

Busy Bees Day Nursery at Maidstone Hospital, established in 2005, operates from 7 am to 7 pm, Monday to Friday, all year round, catering to children aged 0-4 years. The nursery received a 'Good' rating from Ofsted on 11th April 2022.

Children are met with a warm welcome and quickly settle into their rooms, with staff providing support to those who need more time. The curriculum is designed around children's interests, ensuring learning is engaging and relevant.

The nursery has made improvements to its environments to better meet the diverse needs of all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Children benefit from extensive outdoor access throughout the day, where they develop physical skills by balancing on beams and navigating a rope bridge with staff guidance to manage risks safely.

The manager maintains regular communication with staff through meetings and supervisions, fostering a supportive environment and addressing training needs. This approach contributes to the continuity of care for children.

The nursery promotes independence, with older children assisting in tasks like preparing lunch tables and serving themselves. Parents appreciate the care their children receive and value being able to engage with staff more closely since the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, enhancing communication about their children's progress and activities.

What it's like

Children are happily greeted by staff and settle in quickly. Older children confidently talk about their learning and share their experiences with each other. Children who are upset are given time and support to settle by their key person.

Warm welcomeOutdoor learningIndividualised curriculumPromotes independenceSupportive staffSEND provision

Pricing & funding

Funding accepted

15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)15 hours — eligible 2-year-olds

Key facts

Opening hours

Monday to Friday, from 7am to 7pm, throughout the year.

Term time / All Year

All Year

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for Busy Bees Day Nursery at Maidstone Hospital

Last inspected 11 April 2022

Safeguarding effective
Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good

What it's like to attend

Children are happily greeted by staff and settle in quickly. Older children confidently talk about their learning and share their experiences with each other. Children who are upset are given time and support to settle by their key person.

Inspector highlights

  • The manager has implemented changes which are positively impacting the setting, including new staff recruitment.
  • The manager has regular meetings with staff to discuss concerns and well-being, and carries out supervisions to address training needs.
  • The manager and staff understand the curriculum intent and focus on supporting children's interests and development areas.
  • Children behave well and older children know to wash their hands before lunch.
  • Children's independence is promoted well, with older children helping to prepare tables and serving themselves.
  • Parents are generally happy with the care their children receive and feel happier being able to come back into the setting after COVID-19 restrictions.

Areas to develop

  • 1improve the way in which staff support children's language development, particularly with younger children
  • 2develop how staff support children to ensure that they consistently promote meaningful learning across the whole setting.
Inspection #10232535 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

The manager identified the need to improve the environments to ensure they are better equipped to meet all children's needs. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities have also benefited from these changes.

Outdoor space

Children have access to the outdoor area for most of the day. They have plenty of opportunities to practise their physical skills, with older children balancing on beams and walking across a rope bridge, supported by staff to manage risks safely.

Parent Reviews of Busy Bees Day Nursery at Maidstone Hospital

4.5
(21)
K Storey
6 months ago

After being shown around a few months ago, this seemed like a great nursery, which is very close to where we live. The issues arose when it came to reserving a place, as we lost the place even though I'd had an email saying it was still being held until the deposit had been paid - very frustrating! Apparently there was lack of communication between the enrollment team and the nursery. When speaking to the manager of the nursery their only concern was about fixing the internal communication problem, rather than trying to help reserve a place for my daughter. I even started to ask about a later start date and chased on numerous occasions about trying to reserve a place, but I just kept being strung along saying that they will look into it and come back to me. They never did, which was very disappointing. I would have preferred to have just be told that there was no spaces left, rather than be left in the lurch. We then had to start looking around at other nurseries, looking further afield and having to reserve a place at a later date than we originally required, due to the time it took to try and sort this issue with Busy Bees. Overall I just felt that there was no consideration for myself and my daughter. Being a first time mum I was anxious enough anyway about trying to find the right nursery and after this experience, I didn't feel very welcomed.

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Jo Brunger
a year ago

Great nursery, staff are brilliant with my child. Couldn’t have asked for a better start in life for my child than attending this nursery. Meals are nutritious and varied and they do lots of learning and activities together with other children helping them to develop relationships with the staff and children.

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Ellie Gilbert
7 months ago

My daughters experience has been amazing, the staff in her room are incredible and I love seeing each day how she progresses

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Charlie Bougourd
4 years ago

The management is appalling, any problem with the short staffing is the staffs fault and not the manager in person. The manager can't manage. My partner worker there and would come home in tears because of other members of staff and managers being horrible to her even though she's works hard and takes care of the kids

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A J
2 years ago

The best place in maidstone for any little angel to attend, we have been very happy here the last 3 years, will be sad to leave

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Reviews from Google for Busy Bees Day Nursery at Maidstone Hospital. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history
Improved from Requires improvement → Good in 2022

Date: February 2009

  • April 2022Good
  • August 2021Requires improvement
  • October 2017Good
  • March 2015Good
  • April 2014Requires improvement
  • February 2013Good
  • February 2009Good

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