Selly Oak Nursery School: nursery life and the next step

A forest school area, daily sound games and a puppet called Ricky Rabbit give Selly Oak’s nursery life a distinctive shape. Children learn about their rights alongside the practical business of playing, communicating and becoming independent. This is a nursery school in its own right, rather than a nursery classroom within a primary school.

At Tiverton Road in Birmingham, the current nursery offer is for children aged three and four. Entry begins in the term following a child’s third birthday, with starts at the beginning of the autumn, spring or summer term, subject to space. Teachers and teaching assistants work alongside a SENCO and inclusion support assistants.

Play connects the learning here. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together language, movement, relationships, early reading, maths, creativity and understanding the world; Birth to Five Matters guides the steps in children’s development. Indoor and outdoor activities give children opportunities to make choices, collaborate and experiment, rather than treating each area as a separate subject.

Daily phonics begins with listening and distinguishing sounds. Children might drum on outdoor objects, match sounds or clap syllables. Metal Mike, a toy robot, turns spoken sound blending into a game. These are concrete ways to practise hearing how words work before reading them.

Outside, bikes, large crates and a climbing frame support movement and construction. The nursery’s own Forest School area follows a Scandinavian approach to learning outdoors, with boots and weatherproof clothes provided. Outdoor learning continues through the seasons and in different weather, making the natural world part of the day rather than an occasional outing.

Books also travel between nursery and home. Each child receives a book, and the nursery library is introduced to children and families during the second half of the autumn term. Reading diaries let parents record shared books and children express their reactions. Visits to MAC Theatre and concerts by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra extend those experiences into stories, performance and sound.

Key workers connect nursery learning with home. Through IMPACT workshops, families join their children in activities and receive resources to use afterwards. Sessions cover physical development and pre-writing in autumn, early maths in spring and phonics in summer. An adult is expected to attend for each child, but this can be a relative or friend as well as a parent.

Settling can involve individual adjustment: one parent describes a timetable adapted for a child experiencing separation anxiety. That is an example of a family’s experience, rather than a fixed settling programme for everyone.

Lunch is a healthy packed meal brought from home, with a lunchtime supervisor sitting with each group. Morning snacks include vegetables, fruit and milk; children can reach their water bottles throughout the day. Startwell links healthy habits with movement, including fortnightly PE and weekly sensory circuits with a key worker. Quiet, cosy spaces allow children to rest, while care routines encourage growing independence with dressing, washing hands and toileting.

In April 2023, children with SEND received effective support and participated throughout the curriculum; Makaton helped communication, including for children learning English as an additional language. Safeguarding arrangements were effective at that inspection, with concerns reported promptly and discussed with parents.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet its deadline. Choose this nursery for the experience it offers now, while treating the next school application as a separate decision.

Part-time and full-time places can use funded hours. The nursery offers the universal 15-hour entitlement over 38 weeks and 30 hours for eligible families, who must reconfirm eligibility every three months. Funding can also contribute towards breakfast and out-of-school care.

From September 2026, Breakfast Club starts at 8am and After School Club runs until 5pm. Nursery closes for holidays and training days, so families need to plan care around the term calendar. Contact the office on 0121 472 1700 or enquiry@sellyoak-nur.bham.sch.uk for nursery enquiries and current charges. Tours with the headteacher can be arranged by telephone.