The Old School House Day Nursery Middleton

Outdoor preschool gives Middleton its clearest character: Badger's Room children spend much of their time outside, with an indoor classroom alongside Forest School activities, an approach centred on learning outdoors. The Old School House Day Nursery Middleton takes children from 3 months to 5 years in the rural village of Middleton, Tamworth. Its appeal starts with that outdoor emphasis, but the experience differs by age.

At the 3 June 2026 inspection, Ofsted awarded Strong standard for inclusion and children's welfare and wellbeing, Expected standard for achievement, behaviour and routines, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance, with safeguarding standards met. These are separate judgements rather than an overall grade. The balance matters: care and inclusion received the stronger assessments, while the next steps concerned how activities engage younger children and build on skills they already have.

Four animal-named rooms mark the progression from babies to preschool. A key worker is assigned to each child, and the branch has a deputy manager who also holds the SENCO role. Opening hours run from 7.15am to 6pm on weekdays.

Rooms and Ages

Robin's Room, for children aged 3 to 16 months, emphasises early movement, relationships and emotional development, and communication. Those priorities centre on learning to move, connect with others and communicate needs.

Hedgehog's Room takes children from 16 to 24 months, with a calm, natural setting and a transition linked to walking independently. Movement matters here. The room change follows a child's developing ability to explore, giving the progression a practical basis alongside the age band.

Squirrel's Room accommodates children from 24 to 36 months in spacious surroundings with open areas and muted colours. The environment is intended to invite exploration and different experiences during the day.

Badger's Room serves children from 36 to 60 months, combining its indoor classroom with outdoor activities and a predominantly outdoor preschool day. The outdoor emphasis makes preschool different from the younger rooms.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play and everyday routines support their communication, physical development and growing independence. Alongside this, the group's Reggio approach uses natural surroundings and resources that can be played with in different ways. Children have scope to explore and make choices; the surroundings contribute to what they discover.

In June 2026, colour activities illustrated the progression leaders intended: younger children made marks on coloured paper, while older children combined paint and water and transferred their mixtures with pipettes. The latter brings manipulation and experimentation together. However, some activities asked children to use skills they had not acquired, including drawing before they could manage the crayons effectively.

The June 2026 next steps were specific: make the purpose of activities appropriate to children's developmental stage, and establish the curriculum more consistently in the younger rooms. At times, children disengaged and moved between activities, interrupting others. An attractive activity therefore needs a suitable starting point and a clear opportunity to extend learning.

Outdoor and Community Life

In June 2026, each age group had its own garden, and older children could choose outdoor play throughout the day in different weather. A garden treasure hunt involved locating insect pictures and marking them off a list. Balancing on beams supported by tyres added a physical challenge, with staff helping children judge manageable risks.

Sensory exploration also reached the younger children. During June 2026, they handled melting ice and mixed the water into cornflour, talking about textures and recalling where ice comes from. Babies explored bubble wrap fixed to the floor with paint underneath, pressing it with their hands; those becoming mobile also tried stepping across it with adult help. These examples show why the materials matter: a simple resource can invite movement, conversation and experimentation at different stages.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key worker, and the deputy manager also holds the SENCO role, providing a point of contact for additional-support discussions.

In June 2026, children who needed help separating from parents received comfort and familiar experiences, such as sharing a favourite story. Staff exchanged information with families through an app, and parents had opportunities to attend celebration days. Celebration days let families take part in nursery life.

Personal care was handled with attention to children's participation in June 2026. Staff encouraged children to take part in nappy changes and worked with parents on consistent toilet-training routines, beginning that work in the younger rooms. After lunch, individual facecloths helped children practise cleaning their own faces. Independence was built through ordinary care tasks.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the June 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that children with SEND and those facing barriers to learning received highly effective support, including targeted intervention that helped them progress. The mechanisms behind that judgement are more useful than a general assurance: observations identified additional needs, eight-week plans set specific targets, and staff gathered information for specialist referrals when needed.

British Sign Language was part of staff interactions in June 2026, helping communication with children with hearing impairments and those whose speech and language were delayed. Acoustic ceiling panels were being introduced to lessen background noise. Picture boards showed the current activity and the next one, giving children another way to understand transitions.

Changes to everyday organisation also mattered. In June 2026, older children's lunch was divided into separate sittings after staff raised concerns about noise and behaviour in a large group. Room-lead oversight and allergy-management procedures supported the organisation of care. These are dated examples of how the setting operated, rather than promises about every future day.

Food is cooked daily in the nursery's own kitchen, with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks across the day; menus change with the seasons. The food policy provides for dietary preferences and allergy requirements, making individual arrangements an important discussion for families affected by allergies.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, 7.15am to 6pm, for 51 weeks of the year, with bank-holiday closures. These hours offer a substantial weekday window for families balancing care with work. They describe when the nursery is open.

Enquiries can go directly to the Middleton team by telephone on 0121 308 3923 or by email at middleton@theoldschoolhousenurseries.co.uk. The contact form also has a Middleton option.

Getting There

The address is Church Lane, Middleton, Tamworth, B78 2AW, with on-site parking. The rural village setting sits on commuter routes towards the M42, Birmingham city centre and Solihull, making the location relevant to families whose working day takes them in those directions.

Funding and Paid Extras

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. For budgeting, the useful starting point is the attendance pattern being purchased and the treatment of food and everyday supplies, rather than the opening window alone.

• Younger-room teaching. The June 2026 next steps concerned age-appropriate activities and consistent curriculum delivery in the younger rooms. During a viewing, ask staff to explain how a current activity starts from what your child can already do and develops it further.
• Outdoor preschool. Badger's Room children are predominantly outdoors, alongside access to an indoor classroom. Consider whether that pattern fits your child's preferences, and use the appointment viewing to understand how the indoor and outdoor parts of the day work together.
• Attendance and total cost. The nursery opens for 51 weeks with a weekday window of 7.15am to 6pm. Ask for a written proposal covering booking patterns, funded-hour arrangements and the treatment of meals and non-food consumables.
• Dietary arrangements. Meals are prepared on site and the food policy accommodates allergy requirements. Families affected by allergies should confirm the current arrangements for their child's meals and snacks before agreeing care.

Middleton suits families who value a rural setting, natural play materials and an outdoor preschool experience. Badger's Room gives that preference a concrete expression, while the staged rooms offer a different environment for babies and younger children. The June 2026 assessments also give parents a clear distinction between the stronger care and inclusion judgements and the teaching work still required in the younger rooms.

For babies and toddlers, the June 2026 teaching concerns remain the key consideration.