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Busy Bees Hastings

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20 Hours ECE

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Storypark

Enrol Now

details-poi 923 Southampton Street West, St Leonards, Hastings 4120

details-phone 06 870 6950

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details-clock 7:30am - 5:30pm Monday to Friday

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Welcome to 

Busy Bees Hastings

At Busy Bees Hastings, we nurture relationships (whanaungatanga), creating a strong sense of belonging where children feel safe, confident, and capable. In our calm, unhurried environment, we respect each child’s mana, allowing them to take risks, explore through play and active movement, and experience aroha every day. At Busy Bees Hastings children can truly be themselves and have fun!

Boys enjoying the fort on a sunny day at Busy Bees Hastings
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Our Learning Priorities

Promote Active Movement
Through fun, engaging activities, we inspire young children to explore, move, and play, fostering physical, cognitive, and social growth.

Fostering Relationships and Whanaungatanga
Strengthening connections and a sense of belonging, we prioritise nurturing meaningful relationships and community bonds in our learning environment.

Building Social and Emotional Competency
Empowering tamariki to understand emotions, develop empathy, and form positive relationships for lifelong success.

Our Rooms

Busy Bees Hastings has a cosy nursery, separate toddler space and an adventurous kindergarten environment. Each area has their own separate outdoor space providing endless opportunities to explore the natural environment. Our centre promotes an inclusive environment where tamariki develop knowledge and understanding of NZ’s dual heritage, culture, language and identity as well as recognising the diverse cultures of our community. We communicate, engage and work in partnership with parents and whānau regarding all aspects of children’s learning, interests, goals and holistic development.

Rūma Pēpi - Nursery (up to 2 years)

We recognise parents/caregivers as the child’s first educators and through a supportive and collaborative approach we will work together to develop shared goals and aspirations for children. Our Nursery environment is based on building loving and trusting bonds between infants and teachers, who structure the day according to individual needs. Play is open-ended and full of fun as we embrace the unknown of how children explore and experiment with their ideas and theories of how the world around them works.

Rūma Nohi - Toddlers (2-3 years)

We know big changes happen during this time like increased independence and more curious questions. Our educators welcome each toddler with open arms and patience. Our Toddler environment is prepared to entice children’s curiosity and exploration where testing, trying and challenge is valued. We support childhood learning with a curriculum that is developmentally appropriate and supportive of all children during this age of discovery and wonder.

Rūma Tuakana – Kindy (3-6 years)

Our Kindergarten programme provides opportunities throughout the day for children to be involved in contributing to the curriculum, helping to make decisions about what is set up, and sharing their ideas to slowly prepare our little ones for their next learning adventure.

We are proud to be a lunchbox centre. This promotes independence as well as encourages self-help skills in preparation for school.  We encourage families to make healthy food choices and ensure their child’s pouaka kai (lunch box) meets centre guidelines as well as Ministry of Health criteria for Early Learning Services.

Curriculum

Our local curriculum incorporates learning dispositions, the principles and goals of our ECE curriculum Te Whāriki, and competencies derived from Tataiako. Our innovative learning environments are abundantly resourced with stimulating educational resources which complements the delivery of our local curriculum and educational programme. Our teachers are passionate about encouraging children's creativity, supporting their emerging social interactions, and celebrating their individual successes.

Passionate Teachers

We have a talented group of kaiako who have been selected based on their experience and passion within the Early Learning field, their professional knowledge of teaching and nurturing tamariki as well as their philosophy of education and knowledge of child development.

Community

At Busy Bees Hastings, we believe that as an early learning centre, we have an important part to play in our local community and a very special opportunity to positively impact the lives of our young tamariki in their early stages of development. We celebrate whanaungatanga by connecting with our community through multicultural celebrations, and creating a sense of belonging, where everyone has a place, no matter what culture they identify with.

Nurturing Transitions: Our Journey to School


As children prepare to spread their wings and fly towards new adventures in school, we remain committed to providing a supportive and nurturing environment that honors their individuality, fosters meaningful connections, and instils a lifelong love for learning.

We support by:

  • Conducting individual meetings with families to discuss their hopes, and aspirations for their child regarding the transition.
  • Organise orientation visits to local schools, allowing children to explore the environment and meet teachers and gain an understanding of how schools operate.
  • Collaborate with schools to share information about children's interests, learning styles, and developmental progress.

In our Rūma Tuakana room we also have a range of activities that introduce school-related concepts through play play-based activities, such as role-playing, storytelling, and art. We also facilitate group discussions about school routines, expectations, and coping strategies for managing change.

Caring and nurturing teachers at Busy Bees Hastings
MOVE movement programme at Busy Bees Hastings
Childcare movement and physical development at Busy Bees Hastings
Fun, friendships and learning at Busy Bees Hastings childcare nursery
Nurturing a love of literacy at Busy Bees Hastings nursery
Education through play Busy Bees Hastings early learning
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Testimonials

I really like Busy Bees Hastings. All the teachers are always nice and polite and always very welcoming. I feel my daughter is always in safe hands when I drop her off and she's always got a smile on her face and happy when I pick her up. I give Busy Bees Hastings 10/10. Would highly recommend Busy Bees as one of the best childcare centres to send your children too

Parent Feedback

The whole process from first point of contact has been incredibly friendly and professional. I was very nervous as I had no idea what I was doing but every staff member I came across was supportive and kind. Frankie's development since starting with Busy Bees has been incredible and it's been such a joy to watch! I recommended Busy Bees to my sister in law and her little girl starts in July!

Parent Feedback

Eli has learnt and grown so much over the past few months, he has really embraced his new surrounds and the teachers have been phenomenal in assisting with making his transition as smooth as possible.

Parent Feedback

They place emphasis on building relationships with the children and they’re very good with being attentive and understanding their needs.

Parent Feedback

Theon has such a positive experience at Busy Bees Hastings. He’s made so many friends too! The teachers go above and beyond to make him feel that he belonged to this community. 10/10!

Parent Feedback

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