Busy Bees at Maidstone Oakwood

Busy Bees at Maidstone Oakwood

Unique reference number (URN): 2823439 Address: Queens Road, Maidstone, ME16 0JN Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 06/01/2025 Registers: EYR Registered person: Busy Bees Nurseries Limited

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders and staff skilfully and swiftly identify the needs of all individual children and fully understand how to support them to achieve in relation to their starting points. Staff plan individually to minimise learning barriers for all children. This includes disadvantaged children, children who are known (or were previously known) to children's social care and those who face barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. This is demonstrated when staff complete specific training and share resources and equipment with families. Staff know where to direct families for the support they need and prioritise the wellbeing and welfare of all families and children.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Staff successfully assess children's progress and ensure they meet the children's individual needs very well. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff make effective adaptations to support all children and provide a consistent approach to their care and learning. For instance, they share and provide the same resources and share effective strategies with parents, such as spinning chairs and visual prompt cards to help children focus and regulate their emotions.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders use additional funding effectively to support the individual needs of children. This includes purchasing resources and equipment that they know will support children's individual development. All staff have established highly positive partnerships with outside agencies and families. This includes sharing training ideas and implementing strategies to support children, such as using sign language.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders have worked extremely hard to support the team to build morale and make significant improvements since the last inspection. It is evident that there are highly effective processes in place to ensure they coach, support and mentor all staff. This includes providing individualised bespoke training to build on the staff's strengths and develop their confidence in all aspects of practice, including embedding a successful curriculum.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders are very evaluative and reflective on practice. Staff wellbeing is supported and workload is manageable. Leaders prioritise the wellbeing of staff and ensure that they work together as a team to highlight areas they wish to build on further. This includes aiming to widen their community involvement and what they would like to celebrate as one of their strengths, such as their partnerships with parents. There are strong partnerships with parents and other early years professionals. For example, staff keep parents informed of their children's learning and next steps and routinely share children's achievements with them. This includes carrying out observations and making next steps in learning together. There is a strong and consistent link between children's shared care and learning opportunities.

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Expected standard

Leaders are extremely passionate and dedicated and have very high expectations of both themselves and staff. Therefore, all staff have high expectations of their performance and strive to provide the best possible outcome for all children.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make progress in relation to their starting points across all areas of learning. This includes those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those in receipt of additional funding. Children develop skills to prepare them for their next stage of learning. For instance, children follow routines and fully understand what is expected of them. However, at times children do not consistently have opportunities to problem-solve with greater independence.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children fully understand each other's needs and respect that some children will require different support and manage their emotions differently. For example, children are kind in suggesting that calming tents are put out to support children with SEND to feel safe and calm if they become overwhelmed. Staff are dedicated to supporting children and building on their own knowledge and skills. This includes attending specific training to support children with SEND.

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Achievement Expected standard

All children have a keen interest in books and singing, and their communication and language are confident. Babies enjoy props to tell well-known stories, and older children are keen to act out stories and recall the storyline with confidence.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

All staff are positive role models and support children to behave well. Overall, all children fully understand what is expected of them. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those in receipt of additional funding. Children know the routines and follow instruction with maturity. Children behave well. However, when children have slight and minor disagreements, staff quickly step in to suggest a resolution. Therefore, children do not consistently have opportunities to problem-solve any minor issues with more independence to strengthen their social skills even further.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Staff are skilful in identifying how to support children who have SEND. This is evident when staff redirect children to an activity that they know will regain their focus and regulate their emotions if they feel overwhelmed. Leaders and staff ensure they teach children routines and what is expected of them. All staff know babies well and ensure they are settled and happy. They swiftly identity when babies are in need of a bottle or a nap. Babies' individual needs are effectively and swiftly met. Older children know the routines well, and these are well organised by staff. There is minimal waiting and disruption to children's play and learning. Therefore, children remain engaged throughout their day.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

All children are happy, settled and confident, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff have successfully created safe, hygienic and welcoming learning environments for children of all ages and abilities. For example, leaders and staff risk assess equipment routinely.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders and staff have successfully established an effective key-person system which supports all children to feel safe and secure. Children engage in activities and learning experiences to develop their physical skills. For example, babies balance on safe and age- appropriate beams and splash in puddles. Older children negotiate space while riding bikes. All children learn about the importance of following thorough health and hygiene practices, such as handwashing, and follow these routines with independence. Staff teach children about the importance and benefits of healthy eating.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Staff support children to manage their emotions and feelings well. This includes the youngest, who use mirrors and pictures to learn about how they may feel. Staff talk about children being 'new' and 'worried', and children kindly suggest they may be 'feeling sad'. They go on to be encouraged about how they can help make these children feel happy. Children play happily together and enjoy the company of staff. This includes older children seeking them out for reassurance and babies giggling as they play peekaboo games.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders and staff have worked hard to ensure they embed and successfully implement an engaging and challenging curriculum for all areas of learning across the nursery. Staff have a clear knowledge of what children already know and how they can help them build on their skills. For instance, when babies bring a tiger toy over to the train play, staff skilfully retell a well-known tiger story, and children hear a wide range of vocabulary and enjoy storytelling activities. When older children are exploring sunflowers, they go on to learn about the process of planting and are excited for their own sunflowers to grow.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Staff plan concise and individual next steps for children's development, and children make progress in relation to their starting points. The curriculum is well embedded and thought out. However, on the odd occasion, staff do not quickly engage children who may need additional encouragement to join in their interesting activities more promptly. All children are happy, and staff supervise and deploy themselves well. However, some children would benefit from more adult encouragement to get the most out of their learning sooner.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

All staff support children to be confident to communicate. Older children make up their own narratives during role play and answer thought-provoking questions. All children including the youngest consistently and effectively use signing. For example, babies sign 'more', and all children are able to communicate their needs effectively.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children of all ages and abilities are settled and happy in the safe, friendly and welcoming nursery. Children are happy to arrive and are excited to engage in motivating activities that staff carefully plan. For example, babies explore their senses as they pour water and fill containers. Older children enjoy investigating artists and create their own version of Van Gogh's painting of sunflowers.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

All children are engaged in learning opportunities that staff provide. Children benefit from the well-established key-person system, and staff know all children well. Children demonstrate positive attitudes towards their learning and benefit from the well-implemented and successfully embedded curriculum.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make progress and develop new skills to support their future learning and help prepare them for their eventual move to school. This is evident when children make independent choices and complete tasks such as meeting their own care and hygiene needs with confidence, for example toileting.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

All children achieve and get the most out of their learning, which staff skilfully adapt to meet children's individual needs and abilities. Children have opportunities to persist and achieve their goals. For example, when babies fill containers with balls of paper, staff adapt the containers' height and size to help ensure babies can achieve the desired outcome. Children take pride in their achievements. They play with each other happily and develop positive social skills. This includes being patient, taking turns and sharing with maturity.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children and families are welcomed and feel supported and listened to by leaders and staff. For example, they have their ideas listened to and valued. All staff provide helpful advice and individual support when necessary. Children's attendance is closely monitored. Parents are supported to fully understand the impact of punctuality and regular attendance to support children's development and enjoyment of learning and help prepare them for the expectations of school.

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Next steps

Leaders should support staff confidently, and swiftly recognise when children may need more encouragement to join in and get the most out of interesting learning opportunities. Leaders should strengthen staff's understanding of how to consistently support children to problem-solve and resolve any minor disagreements with more independence.

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Busy Bees Nurseries Limited

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, a special educational needs coordinator, parents and children during the inspection.

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About this inspection

We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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