Busy Bees Pre-School and Day Nursery

Yurts, a field and gardens give Busy Bees Pre-School and Day Nursery a recognisable character on Meadow Drove in Bourne. Its three-acre site brings outdoor space into the nursery day, while a bedroom provides somewhere quieter for sleep. This is a setting where the physical surroundings deserve as much attention as the activity rooms.

At its March 2024 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, while identifying improvements needed in teaching during child-chosen play and in language interactions with younger children. Those qualifications matter alongside the positive judgement: practitioners' contribution to extending play and modelling useful vocabulary matters as much as the surroundings.

Busy Bees has capacity for 120 children in total. It accepts children from six weeks to 11 years, combining early years care with The Beehive Out of School Club, which provides care around the school day and during holidays. Term-time attendance, care across the year and sessions arranged around shift work give families different ways to use it.

Rooms and Ages

Mini Bees serves babies who are crawling, cruising or beginning to walk, with sensory materials, accessible baskets, sofas for bottle feeds and an enclosed outdoor area shared with toddlers. Treasure baskets and discovery bottles give babies things to handle and investigate, while low furniture lets them join activities and meals alongside other children. The arrangement makes developmental stage relevant to the room choice, rather than age alone.

Ladybird Room is for younger toddlers, and Bumble Bee Room is for older toddlers. In Bumbles, children choose play materials and develop communication through stories, drawing and pretend play; a bedroom with cots and individual bedding supports daytime sleep. Parents moving beyond the baby stage have a useful distinction to consider: a child's confidence on their feet and readiness for more independent choices.

Honey Bee Yurt serves children generally aged two or recently turned three, combining interest-led choices with role play, creative activities and access to the gardens. Busy Bee Yurt is for three- and four-year-olds in their preschool year, with practical investigations, changing pretend-play settings and exploration of the garden and field. The progression gives older children more opportunities to investigate ideas and practise friendships as school approaches.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) shapes learning through play, with communication, physical development and relationships feeding into later work with literacy, number, creativity and understanding the world. This is the shared early years framework. At Busy Bees, staff use observations and children's interests to shape activities within it, rather than expecting every child to learn in the same way at the same pace.

Preschool activities include exploring magnets and testing what floats or sinks. Water, dough and sand provide materials for investigation, while the pretend-play space changes between settings such as a veterinary practice and a hospital. These are concrete ways to connect talking, experimenting and imaginative play. Painting, stories and singing sit alongside them, so the day is broader than preparation for formal lessons.

In March 2024, older children practised sounds and letters, traced letter shapes with their fingers in the air and connected letters with familiar objects. Turn-taking and concentration were part of that work too. The improvement priorities concerned the adult contribution: some practitioners missed opportunities to teach during independent play, and some used shortened words with younger children rather than language that would expand their vocabulary.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest school sessions for three- and four-year-olds add outdoor learning to the day. Preschool children also explore the garden and field and make regular outings into Bourne, including visits to shops. These experiences extend learning beyond room resources, giving children familiar places and everyday encounters to discuss.

A March 2024 activity brought newborn lambs into the garden. Younger children explored animal sounds and touch, while older children compared animals; feeding the lambs also involved handling milk bottles carefully. It was a useful example of one shared experience being adapted for different stages. At that time, children also practised choosing suitable outdoor clothing and managing it themselves, connecting outdoor activity with everyday independence.

Sleep arrangements change with the child's stage. Mini Bees has cots in a bedroom, with bedding allocated to each child. Honey Bees can rest on mats in the chill out yurt, with staff sitting beside sleeping children; rest follows the child's wishes rather than being imposed. Preschool children also have sleep mats, so moving into an older group does not mean losing the option of a daytime nap.

Toilet training is approached alongside parents. Children can join Honey Bees before they are potty trained, and staff support the process when they are ready; smaller toilets and potties make the equipment accessible. Busy Bees takes the same approach with preschool children. For families whose child's development does not match a rigid timetable, these arrangements have direct practical value.

Preparation for a child with special educational needs or a disability includes discussion with parents or carers about that child's requirements. This gives families a concrete starting point for planning support. It is a mechanism for individual preparation, rather than a general promise about outcomes.

In March 2024, the nursery employed 51 childcare staff, of whom 39 held early years qualifications at level two or above. Those are whole-setting staffing figures from that date, not room sizes or an indication of how many adults work with a particular child. During the same month, children sought comfort from familiar practitioners and used taught language to negotiate sharing resources; communication with parents included information about children's development and consideration of their feedback.

Moving on includes group visits to Bourne Abbey and Bourne Westfield for children who will attend those schools. Familiar nursery staff accompany them, giving the change a practical introduction before school begins. A leaving ceremony, souvenir photographs and the Busy Bee concert mark the transition, and families receive their child's learning journey. The concert takes place towards the end of term, with a weekend performance intended to help parents attend.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Bungalow, Meadow Drove, Bourne, PE10 0AL. Normal opening hours are Monday to Friday, 7.30am to 6pm. Flexible sessions can be arranged for term-time or year-round attendance, including regular monthly shifts, changing shifts and split shifts; charging follows the booked time in quarter-hour increments. That flexibility is useful where a fixed morning or afternoon would leave gaps around work.

Full-time attendance is also offered from 8am to 6pm across five days. Early drop-off runs from 7.30am to 8am, with 7.15am to 8am possible by prior agreement, and later collection runs from 6pm to 6.30pm. The Beehive has a morning booking from 8am to 8.45am and an early-start option from 7.15am to 8.45am, alongside after-school care and holiday attendance.

General enquiries can be made by telephone on 01778 423720, by email at contact@busybeesbourne.co.uk or through the contact form. There is on-site car parking. Drivers are asked to take care within the site.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes funding from nine months, two-year-old funding and funding for two-year-olds whose families receive qualifying benefits. Private childcare is charged by time booked. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the funding and fees page sets out the charging arrangements and payment options, including Tax Free Childcare and childcare vouchers.

Bourne Catering prepares and delivers lunches, with a main dish, vegetarian meal or packed option, and families can instead send lunch from home; hot lunches and tea are charged separately, while breakfast for children arriving at 7.30am or 8am and mid-morning snacks carry no additional charge, and breakfast and tea are complimentary for nursery children attending five full days from 8am to 6pm and Beehive children attending five mornings and afternoons a week. Meals are ordered ahead, and the allergy policy asks families to discuss individual dietary requirements so arrangements can be made together.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a primary school place. Families apply through Lincolnshire County Council's admissions process; transition visits support the move but confer no admissions advantage.

• Adult input during play. The March 2024 priorities concerned timely teaching and vocabulary for younger children. During a visit, ask how practitioners now extend a child's chosen activity and model language in the youngest groups.
• The annual calendar. The funding terms describe 50 weeks of care, including closure during the August Bank Holiday week, while the opening information names bank holidays and Christmas week only. Confirm the annual closure calendar before agreeing a year-round pattern.
• Food and daily supplies. Lunch and tea charges depend on the meal and attendance pattern, and dietary arrangements are made with families. Agree current allergy practice.

Busy Bees suits families seeking term-time sessions as well as those needing care across the year or bookings around changing shifts. The yurts, extensive outdoor space and separate arrangements for babies give the offer a clear character; practical investigations and school visits add substance beyond the buildings.

The March 2024 judgement balances positive findings with specific teaching priorities. For parents who value outdoor learning and a flexible attendance pattern, this is a nursery worth considering closely, with attention to the adult interactions that turn appealing activities into learning.