Busy Bees Basingstoke Hospital

Our son loves being at Busy Bees Hospital Nursery in Basingstoke. Staff worked closely with us to help him settle when things weren’t going so well and now, he is a confident, happy boy who asks to go back when I pick him up on the half days. In his own, 2 year old words, ‘It is SO pretty and they have SO many nice toys.’ The staff are warm, friendly and understand him very well. The menu is fantastic (often wish I was there for lunch/tea) and provides a range of healthy food experiences for young explorers. The management staff also partner with parents and know all the children’s names and how they are progressing. We love going to see what sort of day he has had and the fun along the way.

We have been using this nursery since 2014 and were happy at the beginning. The cleanliness has been worse (over time) but could still improve. There were more interaction with the parents in the form of parent’s forum but this also depends on parent’s engagement. The constant turnover of staff is very distressing. The staff are caring but the level of learning activities at pre-school is very poor when I compare it to 3 years ago (other child). I would expect more learning activities, not necessarily with expensive resources but more focus time on reading, phonics, maths, etc and getting ready for school. The rooms are not inviting at all, the building is tired and despite staff efforts, it needs more funding. The atmosphere is ok but needs more support and investment.

My child is very happy at this nursery and all her needs are met. She has made friends and eats a good variety of food. All her carers are approachable and helpful.

My daughter has been attending Busy Bees since she was nine months old, she is now nearly four years old and dropping off has not got any easier for my daughter. Yet all I can say is thank you to the amazing staff for supporting myself and more importantly my daughter giving her the reassurance, care and support she needs to start her day at nursery. Every night I collect her, she has had a brilliant day and asks to go back the following day. The reason I chose this nursery was the vast amount of space in each of the rooms and the lovely garden that the children get to enjoy. We have felt welcome from day one. The staff at this nursery are second to none and clearly have a passion for the work they do. Would highly recommend.

My daughter has been attending here for a year now and she asks to go every day. She absolutely loves it and comes home very happy telling us about her day. She enjoys and always tries the different foods given and she has been much better at home with eating dinners too. I enjoy the handovers from the staff and all of the staff are always accommodating.

Little communication from the nursery on what my son has been doing, only really a few pictures on the system to show what he has been doing, not had much interaction with his keyworker. Another member of staff on the other hand is a breath of fresh air and does tell me what he has been doing when she hands over! This is time is important as we don’t even get to see him in the nursery currently only at the door. Overall I am happy with the nursery staff they seem nice and he is looked after. Just needs more communication and updates on activities and learning. I would like to see him playing/interacting with the kids.

Since last year, I have seen a massive turnaround with the nursery. My daughter absolutely loves it there and loves all the staff members. It was really good that you could physically see the changes that were happening and how much it has improved. I will always recommend the nursery. The staff are amazing too, they are always so welcoming, friendly, kind and caring. Communication is really good as well. They make the effort to tell you what your child has been up to during the day and are never afraid to have a chat to you. They make sure to publish updates of your child on the app, which I also love. They have encouraged my daughter so much and her speech has come along so good from the activities they do at the nursery.

My son has attended the centre since 2020. From settling in sessions to now being in preschool, he has always gone in a happy child and comes out happy. I have always felt listened to if there was anything I needed to raise and my son has had the support he needed and developed as he is expected to. He has built friendships and good relationships with the staff that look after him and I have no concerns about leaving him in their care.

Busy Bees Basingstoke Hospital has been my 7month old daughter’s first nursery. The staff made me feel so welcome, they have always been super understanding of how hard it is for parents to be leaving their precious babies with new people, yet the nursery staff made me feel very reassured that my daughter is in good hands by keeping us updated over the portal and detailed handovers at the end of each day. Another plus side is that my daughter would always eat freshly prepared meals as the nursery has an on-site kitchen. I would definitely recommend the nursery.

The team are always so supportive and helpful. I feel like each of them knows my son really well and he is always made to feel special and welcome. The activities are always diverse and with a real focus on supporting the interests and needs of the child. They have excellent communication and regularly do craft activities creating cute items for him to take home. In short they leave us feeling happy to leave him in their care, which is probably the greatest of endorsements. Thank you to the whole team for all the amazing work you do.