Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School, Solihull
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 7 in Solihull, part of Central Schools Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in July 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. It was 51% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Solihull (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School in detail
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "We are a very caring and friendly nursery and infant school, with preschool childcare available on site, situated in the Damsonwood area of Solihull. Our aim is to provide the best possible early education for our children and we were recently recognised as a 'Good' school by Ofsted (July 2019)."
The school runs after-school care.
Headteacher's welcome (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Getting a place at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
For September 2026 entry, 26 families put Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School as their first choice and 74 named it as one of their preferences, for 28 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School are Coppice Academy (0.2 miles, 75% reading, 72% maths); Tudor Grange Primary Academy Yew Tree (0.6 miles, Good, 97% reading, 87% maths); Greswold Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 84% reading, 80% maths); and Ulverley School (0.9 miles, 75% reading, 76% maths).
Coppice AcademyTudor Grange Primary Academy Yew TreeGreswold Primary SchoolUlverley School
The trust
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is one of 2 schools run by Central Schools Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
13 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School (as of September 2025): 92% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 0% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (100%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (0%).
Who goes there
33.6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (56%), Asian (23%) and Black (7%).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Solihull Rail Station, about 1.4 miles away in a straight line.
12 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Stockwell Rise (adjacent), 90 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 90 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and vehicle crime. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Solihull (226).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School issued 9 suspensions, 6.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from July 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This inclusive school excels at creating a warm, caring environment where children are happy and excited to learn. The school uses its SPARKS values (safe, proud, ambitious, ready, kind, successful) to help pupils reflect on their behaviour and relationships. With excellent phonics teaching, rich arts and music provision, and strong support for children with additional needs, every child is helped to thrive alongside their peers.
Key Strengths
- Strong emphasis on oracy and phonics with reading woven throughout the curriculum
- Effective support for pupils with SEND who develop independence and confidence
- Extensive arts and music curriculum with pupils learning about different artists and developing creative skills
- High levels of care with consistent behaviour expectations helping children feel safe and secure
- Wide range of extra-curricular clubs and enrichment activities creating memorable learning experiences
Areas for Improvement
- Early years curriculum (Woodies) not sequentially designed from age 2, meaning children don't encounter new knowledge coherently from start to end of Year 2
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with open and positive culture prioritising pupil interests.
Extracurricular Activities
Extra-curricular clubs, trips, sporting events, arts events, fundraising activities (including air ambulance fundraiser at Christmas), school council, anti-bullying ambassadors, before- and after-school clubs
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School has maintained its good standards and continues to provide high-quality education. Pupils are happy, safe, and achieve well across an ambitious curriculum from ages 2 to 7.
At a Glance
23.8%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
13 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
23.5
Avg class size
27.3
Infant (KS1)
4
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Latest from Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
Open Mornings
25 Sep 2026
New Leadership
5 Jan 2026
Greener Solihull Schools Award
3 Dec 2025
Children in Need
28 Nov 2025
From Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Keep up with Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
Term dates
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Solihull's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is in Solihull; for families living there:
Apply to Solihull for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 4
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 2 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Solihull is 12 (the median across 90 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
Will you get a place at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School.
- Solihull publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School for 2017 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Solihull got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
51%
Available places
91 pupils
180 places
89 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Solihull
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Solihull
Across Solihull council
Places available
2,638
Applications
2,090
Got 1st preference
91.7%
Got preferred school
99.0%
All primary applications across Solihull council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
15
SEN Support
4
EHC Plans
15.6%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
122
Total Pupils
59
Boys
63
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
5
Teachers
24.4:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,414
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,445
Per pupil
£713k
Total funding
£41k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
9.1%
Overall absence
28.0%
Persistent absence
75
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
Questions parents ask about Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School
What is Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School's Ofsted rating?
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in July 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
No fixed boundary. When Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is oversubscribed, Solihull allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School was not full in 2025: it ran at 51% of its 180 places.
How big are the classes at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Classes at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School average 23.5 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School has around 122 pupils on roll. 24% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
9.1% of sessions were missed at Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School in 2024/25. 28% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Apply through Solihull's coordinated admissions process, naming Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 2 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Solihull is 12 (the median across 90 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School?
Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School is at Stockwell Rise, Solihull, West Midlands, B92 9LX.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)