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Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham

Ofsted: Good
(Sept 2022)
·
4.4(7 parent reviews) ·Solomon Road, Rainham, Gillingham, ME8 8EB · Medway
Number of places
81 places
Age range
1–4 yrs
Last inspected
Sept 2022
Local authority
Medway

About this day nursery

Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham, located in Gillingham, offers a good provision for children aged 1 to 4 years. The nursery fosters a warm and secure environment where children form strong attachments with staff and are eager to engage in daily activities.

A rich and varied curriculum supports development across all age groups. Babies and toddlers are encouraged to use signing and gesturing to enhance communication and concentration, while also enjoying activities like singing nursery rhymes and early mark-making that develop fine motor skills and mathematical awareness by identifying colours, shapes, and sizes.

Pre-school children engage in teamwork and problem-solving through outdoor activities, building bridges and using mathematical language like "more" and "longer" to develop spatial awareness and independence.

Our ethos

Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham's pedagogical approach focuses on fostering a warm, secure environment that encourages children's engagement through a rich and varied curriculum. It specifically incorporates early communication strategies like signing for babies and toddlers, and promotes teamwork, problem-solving, and the use of mathematical language for pre-schoolers, all while staff act as positive role models with high expectations.

What it's like

Children form very good attachments with staff and feel happy and secure. They benefit from a rich variety of activities and a fun and varied curriculum. Children show good spatial awareness, perseverance and independence as they explore their environment.

Good overall effectivenessStrong attachments to staffRich and varied curriculumFocus on early languagePromotes independenceGood parental partnerships

Key facts

Opening hours

each weekday, from 7am to 6pm, for most of the year

Term time / All Year

All Year

Established

1997

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham

Last inspected 28 September 2022 · Kate Williams

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 form very good attachments with staff and feel happy and secure. They benefit from a rich variety of activities and a fun and varied curriculum. Children show good spatial awareness, perseverance and independence as they explore their environment.

Inspector highlights

  • Staff act as positive role models and have high expectations for children's learning.
  • Children enjoy the freedom of playing outdoors and opportunities for safe risks are incorporated into outdoor play.
  • Children are encouraged to be independent from the outset, learning self-care skills.
  • Staff show a clear and ambitious knowledge of what they want children to learn, aiming to build independent learners.
  • Children have exciting opportunities to learn about different cultures and the wider world.

Areas to develop

  • 1extend opportunities for outdoor learning to fully support children who prefer to learn outside, in all areas of learning
  • 2enhance the planning of activities to ensure the intent is clear and learning concepts are embedded before moving on.
Inspection #10254332 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

What parents say

Verbatim quotes recorded in the Ofsted inspection

Parents make positive comments about the care their children receive.

They are pleased with the service provided and praise staff for their commitment to make sure every child feels valued.

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

The special educational needs coordinator spoke to the inspector about how they support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Outdoor space

Children enjoy the freedom of playing outdoors. Opportunities for children to take safe risks are incorporated into outdoor play. However, there are less opportunities available to fully support development of all areas of learning outside.

Parent Reviews of Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham

4.4
(7)
Jessica Curran
a year ago

Our son has settled in to busy bees quickly and is so eager to get through the doors at drop off in the morning. The updates throughout the day are reassuring and it’s lovely to know what he’s up to. All of the staff are so friendly and he really does have the best time 😊

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Emma Valentine
a year ago

My boys have loved the nursery and now attend the holiday club. The staff are so friendly and welcoming, the nursery is lovely they are always happy to go.

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Lea-Marie Beauty
a year ago

Centre director Samantha spoke to me disgustingly over the phone and wouldn’t give me her name to make a complaint, also hung up on me multiple times…I had to show up to know who I was speaking to so I could describe her to head office. Very unprofessional! She asked me about SEN needs and i discussed with her my son hadn’t been diagnosed and hasn’t got SEN needs officially from his school but was so rude when I was trying to talk to her about him being assessed for ADHD with no diagnosis, I didn’t even need to disclose this to her! i wish I didn’t. I had spoke to her staff weeks prior when the school was still open and had I had known this I would have put them in touch so that they could chat about his need(nothing in place he’s not on the SEND register) I do understand that it is harder work to look after children with SEN needs but he hasn’t been diagnosed! He has nothing in place and to not take someone based on that he’s having an assessment is ridiculous, so now they are ostracising kids that haven’t been diagnosed but because Iv put him forwards for an assessment. She wouldn’t give me her name to make a complaint either and threatening to call the police because she didn’t want me to make a complaint. Power struggle is all I can say. From the minute she answered the phone she had attitude. I hope they record calls. When I said the times were a little weird for me to come and see the nursery she got defensive with me which i found strange to begin With, she said “they’re not weird it’s the times we have” with attitude in her voice and I replied sorry I’m saying they are weird for me not your nursery. Her behaviour on the phone was unacceptable, I’m potentially a paying customer who would entrust my child with them… I wouldn’t want her anywhere near my child, so safe to say I will avoid like the plague! Sounds like she’s struggling to manage, I understand staff talking to people like that through being inexperienced but a CENTRE DIRECTOR! I wasn’t even rude to her until the end when I realised she was out of order the whole time.

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Sally S
2 years ago

Can't fault Busy Bees Rainham. Staff are lovely, professional and engaging. My son loves it here and my daughter will be starting soon.

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Kav Chauhan
a year ago

The staff are so lovely here and my daughter loves going to nursery each day.

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

Inspection history

Date: February 2008

  • November 2022Good
  • September 2022Good
  • August 2017Good
  • July 2017Good
  • October 2014Good
  • September 2014Good
  • December 2013Requires improvement
  • November 2013Requires improvement
  • November 2011Good
  • September 2011Good
  • February 2008Requires improvement

Frequently asked about Busy Bees Day Nursery at Rainham

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