Busy Bees Childcare Centre
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A pre-school in Saffron Walden for from 2 years up to school age, open 08:45 to 16:45, 5 days a week. £24.00 a session, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2024. Open since 2001, with 40 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Term time only, 38 weeks a year.
| Age | Session | |
|---|---|---|
| All ages | £24.003-hour, 3 hrs £48.006-hour, 6 hrs |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £8.00 a session Lunch Club
What a funded hour still costs
Funded hours cover the childcare. These are charged alongside them.
- £0.50 a day Fruit Contribution for Working Families (2, 3, andvoluntary
Funded hours
Funding for 2,3 and 4 year olds.
Worth knowing. Voluntary contribution of 50p per day for fruit/snack; if not participating, provide a fresh piece of fruit.
What childcare usually costs in Essex
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Essex 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
CB10 2YAWhat 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.
Ofsted inspector, 2 October 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and well settled. Staff take time to get to know children and their families very well, through a tailored settling-in process which includes home visits. The child's voice and well-being are at the heart of staff's practice. Children build strong and trusting bonds with staff. They listen to staff, quickly become familiar with the setting's routine, and learn what is expected of them. There is a true sense of community that nurtures children and their families. Staff understand the impact of military life for many of the families whose children attend. They understand that the consistency of attending the setting provides all children with a secure foundation and seek to build on this to support children's learning and development.
Children are confident to communicate their ideas, needs and wants. Staff help children to learn to share and take turns as they play. They provide support and resources, such as sand timers, to help children take ownership of turn-taking.
Staff follow children's lead in play and focus interactions to help children build a wide vocabulary and understanding. Children eagerly join in with play and activities. They enjoy listening to stories. They know and say repeated phrases and words in the story and anticipate what will come next.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- review the organisation of large-group activities to ensure that children continue to enjoy a high standard of teaching and learning at all times.
- 2 October 2024Good
- 14 January 2019Good
- 11 February 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Busy Bees Childcare Centre
- 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
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- Is £24.00 a session still the rate? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? 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.