Little Smarties Academy
Good★ 4.9 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Birmingham for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in July 2023. Open since 2002, with 26 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Birmingham
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Birmingham 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
B42 1NGWhat 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, 4 July 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff provide children and parents with a warm welcome to the nursery. Children form close bonds with the staff who are nurturing and attentive to their needs.
Children and babies show that they feel happy and safe with the staff at the nursery. Staff are always ready to offer a cuddle and reassurance when children need it. Babies confidently play and explore. Older children have good social skills.
The manager and staff place a strong emphasis on children making decisions and leading their own play. They have designed the learning environment with a wide range of open-ended resources that allow children to decide how they will use them. Pre-school children access props that represent characters and key features from books. They create their own story lines. For example, they explain how a whale will swallow objects as it swims in the sea.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- extend the monitoring of staffs planning and teaching to provide further support, so that their teaching is matched precisely to children's learning needs n provide the younger children with consistent messages about the expectations so that they are fully supported to complete everyday tasks for themselves.
- 4 July 2023Good
- 12 December 2017Good
- 20 February 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Smarties Academy
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
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
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? 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.