Busy Bees Day Nursery at Stowmarket
Good★ 4.3 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Stowmarket for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 July 2024. Open since 2002, with 112 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 Suffolk
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Suffolk 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
IP14 5GZWhat 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, 5 July 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are warmly greeted by friendly staff, as they arrive at nursery. Children are well supervised and cared for in a clean, safe, and very welcoming environment.
Staff know children well. Staff carefully structure routines for the day. This helps children to feel safe and secure as they know what to expect and what is going to happen next. Babies' individual needs are well met and their care routines from home are acknowledged and followed. Staff offer babies and toddlers reassuring cuddles as they become tired. Staff gently sooth the children, as they safely settle for a nap.
Staff plan an interesting, varied curriculum, which encourages all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities to be curious about the world in which they live. The learning environment is rich. Learning is appropriately sequenced, building on what children already know and can do. Planned activities take account of children's interests and preferred learning styles. As a result, children show a thirst for learning and show high levels of engagement.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to further build on the principals of planning and to fully embed routines, so that all children receive consistently rich learning opportunities n implement plans to enhance communication with parents and involve them in their children's learning and development even more.
- 5 July 2024Good
- 26 July 2023Needs improvement
- 7 August 2019Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Busy Bees Day Nursery at Stowmarket
- 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.