Oasis Academy Blakenhale Infants Review 2026: A busy Birmingham infants setting with clear routines and strong early reading foundations

There is no Key Stage 2 data for an infants-only setting, and the standard national performance measures parents see online for primary schools do not apply in the same way here. For families, the more practical question is whether children leave Year 2 ready for Key Stage 2: fluent enough readers, confident writers, and secure number sense.

The October 2022 inspection report describes a well-planned programme in Years 1 and 2 that covers the national curriculum subjects, with leaders organising learning so pupils are ready for the next stage. The same report highlights the school as a “safe, pleasant and stimulating environment” for pupils, which is the baseline that makes academic progress possible in early years.

If you are comparing local infant options, the best evidence to look for at this phase is not exam scores but the building blocks: phonics approach and consistency, curriculum sequencing, attendance expectations, and how well children with different starting points are supported to catch up quickly. The available official report content indicates that curriculum planning and readiness for the next stage are central priorities.

In early years and Key Stage 1, quality teaching is less about flashy “projects” and more about repetition done well. The school’s curriculum and enrichment pages emphasise physical development, gross motor skills, and structured sport and PE support, including the use of trained sports coaches in the early phase. For many children, especially those who need help regulating attention and emotions, better movement control links directly to better pencil control, sitting stamina, and readiness for phonics and writing.

The health and wellbeing curriculum content provides a practical window into classroom practice. It describes using food and nutrition contexts to make learning relevant, including examples like using fractions and money work through food-related tasks, alongside explicit teaching about healthy choices.

The school also references the THRIVE approach, a structured framework for supporting emotional wellbeing and social skills. In a mainstream infant context, that typically means adults treating behaviour as communication, identifying unmet needs, and using targeted interventions to help children develop self-control and language for emotions, alongside clear boundaries.

Because this is an infants academy (up to Year 2), families usually need a plan for Key Stage 2. The most obvious onward route locally is Oasis Academy Blakenhale Junior, a separate establishment in the same local area, and it is also listed as part of the same trust network. For many parents, that paired infants and juniors structure provides continuity of ethos and routines, even though it remains a transfer point.

Transfer arrangements for moving from an infants school to a junior school are typically run through the local authority process. Birmingham has a dedicated process for infant-to-junior transfer, and families should check the current timetable and requirements so they do not miss deadlines.

If you are shortlisting, a sensible approach is to look at the junior options first, then work backwards. If your preferred junior school has tight demand, understanding its criteria early helps you judge how much continuity is realistic.

Reception admissions are coordinated by Birmingham City Council, rather than handled directly by the school. For September 2026 entry, Birmingham’s published timetable shows applications opened on 1 October 2025 and closed on 15 January 2026, with National Offer Day on 16 April 2026.

The demand picture indicates oversubscription, with 123 applications and 68 offers for the relevant intake cycle provided, and 1.81. applications per place That is competitive, although not in the “impossible without living next door” category you see in some urban schools. What matters in practice is your precise priority group and how many families apply in any given year.

If you are unsure where you sit, the most practical step is to use FindMySchool’s Map Search to check your distance and likely priority position against the school’s published criteria, then sanity-check that with Birmingham’s admissions guidance for the current year.

Open events

The school publicised a Reception open day on 15 October 2025 for children due to start Reception in September 2026. For future cycles, it is reasonable to expect open events around October, but families should always confirm dates on the school’s news page or via the local authority timetable.

At infant age, “pastoral” is mostly about predictable adult responses. The school’s published work on wellbeing centres on healthy living, emotional development, and structured support for social skills.

Safeguarding and attendance expectations are also clearly signposted. The attendance page sets out the morning entry window and procedures for late arrival and absence reporting, which is a helpful indicator of consistent routines.

The Rights Respecting Steering Group work, although spanning the wider setting, is another signal that the school uses shared language around respect, fairness, and responsibility, which tends to reduce low-level friction in classrooms over time.

In infant settings, extracurricular life is often less about competitive teams and more about creating additional practice time for social skills, confidence, and curiosity.

Two named features stand out in the published material:

• Cookery Enrichment, referenced as part of the wellbeing approach, linking healthy eating to practical classroom activities and wider learning.

• Rights Respecting Steering Group, a structured pupil voice mechanism (within the wider Blakenhale setting) that meets regularly with adults to plan and lead rights-respecting work.

There is also explicit mention that clubs, trips, and wraparound care can be booked and paid for through the school’s MyChildAtSchool portal, which suggests the offer is active and operational rather than aspirational.

For parents who need practical support around the working day, Breakfast Club is clearly described and priced on the academy day page, with booking expectations set out.

The core academy day is clearly published. Pupils in Reception to Year 2 arrive between 8:30am and 8:45am, and the school day finishes at 3:15pm, with a stated weekly total of 33 hours and 45 minutes for Reception to Year 2.

Nursery operates morning and afternoon sessions (8:45am to 11:45am; 12:15pm to 3:15pm), with full-time attendance described as 8:45am to 3:15pm.

Breakfast Club runs from 7:45am to the start of the school day, with a published session cost of £3.00. Details of after-school wraparound are referenced through MyChildAtSchool, but if you need exact end times and pricing for after-school care, it is sensible to confirm directly via the school’s current wraparound information, as these provisions can change term to term.

For travel, the school’s site lists local transport points including Lea Hall Train Station and nearby bus stops.

• Competition for Reception places. The intake data indicates oversubscription (123 applications for 68 offers), so admission is not guaranteed and families should plan early.

• Infants-to-juniors transfer point. Because the academy ends at Year 2, you will need a Key Stage 2 plan. That transition can be smooth, but it is still a change to manage.

• Wraparound specifics may need confirming. Breakfast Club is clearly detailed, but after-school care arrangements can vary, so check current availability and hours if you rely on it for work.

• Uniform expectations are specific. Uniform and kit requirements are set out clearly, which helps consistency but can mean families need to budget and plan purchases.

Oasis Academy Blakenhale Infants looks like a purposeful, routine-led infants setting where the fundamentals of early learning, attendance, and behaviour expectations are taken seriously. The school suits families who want clear structures, an active approach to wellbeing, and a mainstream infants provision with wraparound options and a defined Nursery to Year 2 pathway. The main hurdle is securing admission in an oversubscribed intake, and planning early for the Year 2 onward route.