Busy Bees Playgroup
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Gloucester for from 2 years up to school age, open 8am to 6pm. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2025. Open since 1998, with 20 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
For 2, 3 & 4 year olds Covering the free 15hrs and 30hrs funding working families entitlement.
What childcare usually costs in Gloucestershire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Gloucestershire 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
GL3 4NUWhat 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, 30 January 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children happily enter the playgroup and choose from a broad range of experiences, which help them prepare for their next stages in learning. Children develop good language skills and an understanding of behavioural expectations and boundaries, and they gain independence.
Children recognise their name as they find their coat and boots on the chair. They make good attempts to dress themselves for outdoor play. Older children show pride in their achievements and receive praise and a 'high five' from staff. Children who are less confident ask for help. Staff support them well, giving clear instructions to practise skills.
There are clear routines to help children settle and learn the pattern of the day.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- guide staff to consistently use the communication methods that they have identified to better support children's engagement and understanding n develop further opportunities for children to respond to questions, to help them think and solve problems.
- 30 January 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 4 June 2019Good
- 29 June 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Busy Bees Playgroup
- What it costs
- Nappies
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.
- What does it cost, all in? 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.