Bee's Knees Nursery and Pre-School

Bee's Knees Nursery and Pre-School
Unique reference number (URN): 2790291
Address: 86 Rochdale Road, Middleton, Manchester, M24 2QA
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 30/05/2024
Registers: EYR
Registered person: Bee's Knees Nursery and Pre-school Ltd
Inspection report: 22 January 2026
Exceptional
Strong standard
Expected standard
Needs attention
Urgent improvement
Safeguarding standards met
The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for
governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open
culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively
identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.
How we evaluate safeguarding
When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:
Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding.
Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all
legal requirements are met.

Strong standard
Expected standard
Inclusion Strong standard
Leaders and staff demonstrate that they are consistently working with families and external
agencies to ensure that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or
disabilities, are fully supported. This helps children who may face barriers to their learning
make positive progress from their starting points. Children have personalised target plans
that are regularly reviewed to ensure they are the right targets for each child. Children take
part in small-group sessions that tailor support to each individual's needs. Children who
speak English as an additional language are supported in the nursery through adaptations
that enhance their learning and development. Families praise the progress their children
have made since starting at the nursery.
Early identification is a strength of the provision; staff act swiftly to put support in place for
children, including children who speak English as an additional language. This helps
children to really feel part of the nursery and included. Staff thoughtfully put adaptations in
place to support children's development, which has positively supported children's
experiences at the nursery. Leaders use additional funding to support children's individual
needs. Meeting all children's individual needs is a top priority of the nursery. Children are
building more confidence and enjoying their time at the nursery. This has a positive impact
on children's experiences at nursery.
Achievement Expected standard
Children feel a great sense of pride when completing tasks at nursery. For example, they
enjoy talking about what they saw on their visit to the local park. Children talk about the
trees and how some were 'desiderius'. This was a word learned at home and sparked a
discussion about what it meant. Children enjoyed learning about leaves falling from the trees
and winter to support their further understanding of the world around them.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as
an additional language or have barriers to learning make progress from their starting points.
Leaders and staff ensure progress is regularly reviewed to ensure all children make
achievements across all areas of learning.
Children enjoy taking part in extra-curricular activities such as singing and dancing. Younger
children show confidence in dancing along to a singing session. Older children enjoy the
session by following instructions and taking turns with one another, showing the younger
children what to do. Children have lots of fun during these sessions, which supports their
physical development.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders and staff set high expectations for rules and boundaries. Children are sometimes
reminded to take turns and follow instructions. For example, children are encouraged to tidy
up so that it is a safe space for them to move around. This helps children stay safe while at
nursery, and staff praise them for their good tidying-up skills.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities follow instructions well from their
key person. Staff adapt routines to meet the needs of all the children who attend. Leaders
and staff understand the importance of children's attendance at the nursery. This helps
children and families follow good routines.
Staff praise children regularly, and children smile with delight. Children use their manners,
saying please and thank you to their peers and staff at the setting. Children enjoy regular
trips to the local community as part of their daily routine. They recall what they do and see
while they are there.
Children enjoy taking part in many different festivals to help them understand equality and
diversity. For instance, they enjoy learning about the German festival 'Fasching', where they
learn about customs and traditions. Children delight in sharing this with their pen pals in
Germany.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Leaders and staff know the children well. They know what children like and dislike and adapt
their practice to meet their needs.
Children enjoy outdoor play at the nursery. They eagerly line up to go outdoors. The children
have a wide range of outdoor opportunities. For example, children enjoy playing on the
slide, climbing up the steps and sliding down, taking turns. Children understand how to keep
themselves safe. For example when on outings, children follow instructions and rules to
keep themselves safe.
Children have warm relationships with the staff team. Staff teach the children the importance
of leading a healthy lifestyle. Children brush their teeth daily at the setting and understand
the importance of drinking water. Younger children are learning to wash their hands before
eating meals at nursery. Children enjoy a healthy diet and are learning to make healthy
choices with support from the staff team. Leaders and staff follow safer sleep practices at
the nursery to ensure children are kept safe.
Children enjoy talking about their emotions as a group, for example saying, 'I feel happy
today.' This supports children's emotional development and wellbeing. Children are learning
to understand how others are feeling.
Children take time to listen to one another and share conversations with the staff team.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or who face barriers to learning
are well supported. Time is spent on each child's learning and next steps. This helps support

them and makes them feel included, enabling them to fully access and enjoy learning at
nursery.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders and staff share a collaborative approach to their teaching at the setting. They work
with their families to collect up-to-date information about each child. This helps support them
with their next steps of learning. Leaders want children when they leave to go to school to
be confident, independent and have the skills and knowledge they need to transition to their
next stage of learning.
Children have good relationships with their key person. Staff can discuss what children
know and can do, and what they are learning next. Children enjoy sharing storybooks with
staff and peers. Staff extend this by taking the children to visit their local library. This further
supports children's communication and language skills. Children share their favourite stories
at the setting. They are fostering a real love of books.
Older children have plenty of opportunities to develop their mathematical skills during play.
Children enjoy counting in both English and German. However, younger children do not
consistently have the same opportunities to develop their early mathematical skills during
play. Children are developing a good understanding of the wider world. For instance, the
nursery has recently linked with a childcare setting in Germany so that children can become
pen pals. They support children learning English as an additional language by collecting
words from home and sharing reading books in different languages.
Leaders and staff support children's physical development. Younger children enjoy exploring
different brushes during play to strengthen their muscles in their hands. Older children are
preparing for their transition to school, learning to write their own names. Children's
personal, social and emotional development is supported well. Leaders and staff provide
time during the day for mixed group sessions so that the older children can play alongside
the younger children. This supports children's self-confidence and promotes positive
behaviours.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders have a secure knowledge of the families and children that attend the setting. They
have a clear vision for the nursery and create a curriculum that is ambitious for all children
who attend, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
Leaders effectively review the nursery to make improvements. For example, they are keen
to develop the outdoor space further, enabling more play and learning opportunities for all
the children at the nursery.
Leaders promote effective partnerships with parents and outside agencies to support
children with SEND. This helps provide children with support and partnership working to
gain good outcomes for all children.
Leaders complete a robust safer recruitment process when new team members start at the
nursery. Regular supervisions take place to monitor practice and to support staff's wellbeing.

Staff are well supported at the nursery; they report that they enjoy coming to work and feel
valued. They complete regular training, which is beneficial to their practice.
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children arrive at nursery with big smiles on their faces. They are greeted by friendly staff
ready to start the day. Children have warm relationships with their key person and seek
moments of cuddles and reassurance. This shows that children feel safe and secure at this
highly inclusive nursery.
Staff work with parents and carers to collect children's starting points to help support their
next steps at nursery. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those
who speak English as an additional language or have barriers to learning are well
supported. Staff expertly ensure that all children's needs are consistently met. They have a
good understanding of how to support and make adaptations to ensure that all children feel
welcome and included in the nursery. As a result, all children who attend make progress
from their starting points.
Children enjoy their time at nursery and engage in play purposefully. Older children enjoy
playing with ice and learning why it melts. Children have a wide range of opportunities to
promote language and communication skills. Children talk about the ice being 'slippery' and
'shivering'. They learn how to make predictions of what happens next. This supports children
in developing their own thinking skills. Younger children enjoy sharing stories and singing
nursery rhymes with the kind, caring staff.
Children are developing their independence skills well. They follow simple instructions such
as tidying up after themselves. This helps children to prepare for their transition to school.
Next steps
Leaders should continue to support the staff team to strengthen their mathematical
curriculum for the younger children to develop their early mathematical development.
Leaders should continue to strengthen areas of improvements to make consistently
strong differences for all children even further.

Inspector:
Lisa Grundy
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2790291
Address:
86 Rochdale Road, Middleton
Manchester
M24 2QA
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 30/05/2024
Registered person: Bee's Knees Nursery and Pre-school Ltd
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Rochdale
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 22 January 2026
Children numbers
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator,
parents and children during the inspection.
We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the
quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The
registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for
children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
30
Our grades explained
Exceptional
Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.
Strong standard
The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of
them.
Expected standard
The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are
following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional
standards expected of them.
Needs attention
The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary
improvements.
Urgent improvement
The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of
education and/or care.
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects
services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects
and regulates services that care for children and young people.
If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille,
please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.
You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium,
under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence, write to the Information Policy

Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email:
psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk.
This publication is available at https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk.
Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information
and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn.
Piccadilly Gate
Store Street
Manchester
M1 2WD
T: 0300 123 1231
Textphone: 0161 618 8524
E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk
W: www.gov.uk/ofsted
© Crown copyright 2026
© Crown copyright