First Steps Nursery Collegiate Academy Trust
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Smethwick for babies from a few weeks old up to 5 year olds, open 07:30 to 17:45, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2023. Open since 2004, with 40 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15-hour and 30-hour places, plus two-year-old funding.
Worth knowing. Additional charges for consumables and meals will be added on a weekly basis for children who attended funded hours only.
What childcare usually costs in Sandwell
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Sandwell from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
B66 4NDWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 26 January 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and confidently separate from their parents on arrival. They have established strong bonds with the staff and can express their wants and needs. Staff encourage children to be kind to one another and to demonstrate respectful behaviour. Children receive praise for their contributions and 'high fives'
as rewards for participation within a group activity or for an individual achievement.
Children explore a wide range of activities. Babies and toddlers delight in discovering a tray of animals frozen in ice and attempt to free the animals using paint brushes and warm water. Older children work together to problem-solve when completing puzzles.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- make the most of opportunities for children to explore maths in the environment and enhance their emerging mathematical understanding.
- 26 January 2023Good
- 6 April 2017Good
- 8 January 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for First Steps Nursery Collegiate Academy Trust
- What it costs
- Meals
- Nappies
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.