Busy Bees at Riverhead
Good★ 4.5 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Sevenoaks for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2023. Open since 2007, with 93 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Kent
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Kent from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
TN13 2DNWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
- 3 December 2024 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 23 March 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and confident to attend this warm and welcoming nursery.
They move freely and independently as they choose their resources and activities, directing their own learning. All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children with English as additional language, make good progress in their learning and development. Children's interests are fostered and taken into account. Staff use observation and assessment effectively to identify what children do well and how to further support their learning.
Children confidently approach staff for cuddles and comfort. Relationships between babies and their key person are sensitive and nurturing. Babies settle well when they start attending the nursery. They are quickly comforted by attentive staff when they get upset or tired. Children demonstrate that they feel safe and secure.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- target support for individual staff to more effectively implement the curriculum aims, fully embedding them in practice to further benefit children's development n help staff to recognise when children would benefit from greater encouragement to fully join in activities.
- 23 March 2023Good
- 6 July 2017Good
- 5 February 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Busy Bees at Riverhead
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.