Busy Bees

What Busy Bees does

Busy Bees Early Learning is an Australian privately-held provider of long day childcare and early learning services, founded in 1983 by Marg Randles and her family. The company operates 80+ company-owned centres across six Australian states and territories (VIC, QLD, NSW, WA, ACT, SA), with additional global operations in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, North America, and Asia. Its National Support Centre is headquartered in Brisbane, Queensland. Services span nursery care (ages 0-2), toddler programs (ages 2-3), and government-approved kindergarten/preschool (ages 3-5), serving children from 6 weeks to 6 years of age.

The core product is supported by the proprietary Bee Curious Curriculum, a play-based framework aligned with Australia's Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) and National Quality Standard (NQS), featuring individualised learning pathways and intentional teaching. Family-facing technology includes the Storypark communication platform for daily updates, the KindyNow mobile application for casual day bookings and absence notifications, and an online Child Care Subsidy Calculator. The company holds an exclusive Australian partnership with Bravehearts for child protection training, and operates sub-brands including Peter Pan Early Learning, Jenny Wren Early Learning, Montessori Tingalpa, Follyfoot Farm, and Springbank Rise.

Busy Bees generates revenue primarily through recurring daily childcare fees (representative rates of $170.10/day for 0-2 years, $169.10/day for 2-3 years, and $167.90/day for 3-5 years at the Altona Meadows centre), with Australian Government Child Care Subsidy (CCS) reducing out-of-pocket family costs. Distribution is fully direct-to-consumer: families locate centres via the website, book tours online, and enrol with individual centres; additional demand is generated through community engagement, partnerships, and word-of-mouth referrals. The 3-Day Guarantee, effective January 2026, introduces 72 hours of subsidised care per fortnight without an activity test and is positioned to expand the addressable market.

Name

Busy Bees

Legal name

Busy Bees Early Learning

Website

https://busybees.edu.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Busy Bees Early Learning is an Australian privately-held operator of 80+ long day childcare and early learning centres across six states, serving families with children aged 0-5 through its proprietary Bee Curious curriculum, digital family communication tools, and exclusive child-safety partnership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Childcare Services

NAICS

Child Care Services (624410), Child Care Services (62441), Child Care Services (6244)

SIC

Services-Child Day Care Services (8351)

akta.pro primary industry

Full-Day Childcare Centers (EDACAAAA)

Keywords

• Early childhood education
• Long day childcare
• Kindergarten programs
• Preschool education
• Nursery care

Headquarters

HQ city

Jundah

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Long Day Childcare Care: Busy Bees operates long day care centres providing childcare services for children from 6 weeks to 5 years. Families pay daily fees which vary by age group (0-2 years, 2-3 years, 3-5 years). The Australian Government's Child Care Subsidy (CCS) reduces out-of-pocket costs for eligible families based on income, activity levels, and number of children.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Busy Bees operates company-owned long day childcare and early learning centres across Australia, providing full-day care, nursery care, toddler programs and government-approved kindergarten for children aged 6 weeks to 5 years. Service is delivered through the proprietary Bee Curious Curriculum and includes meals, nappies, hats and sunscreen in the daily fee, with fees offset by the Australian Government Child Care Subsidy (CCS). Families find centres via the website, book tours online, and enrol directly with the centre.

Product overview

Busy Bees operates as a network of early learning and childcare centres across Australia, offering long day care services from nursery (0-2 years) through to kindergarten/preschool (3-5 years). The core product is supported by the proprietary Bee Curious Curriculum, a play-based learning framework aligned with the Early Years Learning Framework and National Quality Standard. Additional services include the Child Care Subsidy Calculator for fee estimation, the Bee Healthy Menu nutrition program, and safeguarding services developed in partnership with Bravehearts. The 3-Day Guarantee program provides subsidized care access. All services are connected via family communication tools including Storypark for daily updates and the KindyNow app for booking and absence notifications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Peter Pan Early Learning by Busy Bees: Early learning centre operating under the Busy Bees brand in Curtin, ACT
• Follyfoot Farm by Busy Bees
• Jenny Wren Early Learning by Busy Bees
• Montessori Tingalpa by Busy Bees
• Springbank Rise by Busy Bees
• Yerrabi Ponds by Busy Bees

Products and services

• Busy Bees Early Learning Centres (Long Day Childcare) Company-owned long day childcare centres providing full-day care for children from 6 weeks to 5 years, with meals, nappies, hats and sunscreen included in the daily fee and fees offset by the Australian Government Child Care Subsidy (CCS). Families book tours online, view availability by centre via the website, and enrol directly with their chosen centre.
• Nursery Care (Ages 0-2 years) Early learning care for babies and infants from 6 weeks focusing on secure bonds, sensory play and developmental support through individualized care routines, delivered within the Bee Curious Curriculum framework.
• Toddler Care (Ages 2-3 years) Early learning program for toddlers that supports growing independence, language development, social skills and confidence-building through play-based experiences under the Bee Curious Curriculum.
• Kindergarten and Preschool (Ages 3-5 years) School-readiness program following a Government-approved Kindergarten framework, preparing children with literacy, numeracy, social skills and cognitive development through individual learning pathways, including a structured Transition to School program. Eligible families can access state-funded kindergarten programs (e.g. Free Kinder VIC, Start Strong NSW, Free Kindy QLD).

Quantifiable outcome

• Children receive 60% or more of their daily nutritional needs through Bee Healthy menu

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BraveheartsflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 September 2024Busy Bees is the only early learning provider in Australia to partner with Bravehearts for child safety. The partnership includes sector-leading interactive Child Protection and Safeguarding learning program completed by all Busy Bees employees on commencement and annually. Bravehearts supports with Ditto's Keep Safe Adventure Show for children, resources and strategies for best-practice programming, prevention and safe environments. Busy Bees is a sponsor and matched giving partner of Bravehearts Day (held annually in September) and sponsors the Bravehearts 777 Marathon. In 2024, Branka Indic from Busy Bees raised $27,230 in the marathon, with Busy Bees presenting a total cheque of $57,230 to Bravehearts.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Storypark: Family communication platform integrated into Busy Bees centres. Relevant as an enabling technology partner rather than a competitor, providing the daily update and parent engagement layer across Busy Bees' network.

Broad incumbents

• Bright Horizons Family Solutions: Global early education and childcare operator with centres across the US, UK, and Europe. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same sector, although its operating geographies do not directly overlap Busy Bees' Australian footprint.
• Busy Bees (Global / UK): Parent brand of the Busy Bees Australia entity, operating the largest UK nursery chain. Listed as a broad incumbent given shared brand, curriculum, and operational know-how flows into the Australian business.

Direct peers

• Only About Children: Premium Australian long day care and preschool provider with campuses across NSW, VIC, and QLD. Competes in the same upper-quality tier as Busy Bees, with comparable curriculum-led positioning and CCS-aligned pricing.
• Imagine Childcare: Australian-owned early learning operator with a growing multi-state centre portfolio, focused on long day care and kindergarten. Comparable in scale range and CCS-subsidised fee model to Busy Bees.
• Guardian Childcare & Education: Premium Australian early learning operator with centres across multiple states, focused on high-quality curriculum and educator-led programming — closely mirrors Busy Bees' Bee Curious positioning and EYLF alignment.
• Explore & Develop: Australian early learning operator running purpose-built centres with a curriculum-led, EYLF-aligned model. Overlaps with Busy Bees on positioning, fee tier, and target demographic of professional families.
• Affinity Education: Operates 165+ early learning centres across Australia under multiple brands. Competes head-to-head with Busy Bees on long day care, kindergarten, and CCS-subsidised fees, with a similar purpose-built centre strategy.
• Goodstart Early Learning: Australia's largest not-for-profit early learning provider with 650+ centres nationally. Directly comparable to Busy Bees in long day care, kindergarten programs, and CCS-subsidised operating model, with similar multi-state footprint and EYLF-aligned curriculum.
• G8 Education: ASX-listed operator of 400+ childcare centres across Australia under brands including Little Learners and Community Kids. Closely comparable on long day care model, government subsidy exposure, and multi-state centre operations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNbytjlK5MTbSvOF-JZtQDg
• Facebookfacebook.com/busybeesau
• LinkedInau.linkedin.com/company/busybees-au
• Instagraminstagram.com/busybees_au
• Xx.com/busybeesuk

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Busy Bees