About Us

The Aunties’ Old School Nursery was established in 1989 by a loving, close-knit family. As concerned parents we set up the nursery for our own children more than three decades ago. Now, three generations of the family – including our children and five grandchildren – are fully invested in the Nursery, ensuring that standards remain at optimal levels.

The Aunties’ settings are uniquely run as one family by the family itself, supported by fully-committed Aunties from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and languages – all of which are daily shared with the children. Both settings benefit from a shared ethos, leadership, management, policies, procedures, resources, care, education, and rotating staff throughout.

The Aunties believe that children flourish when genuinely cherished and respected in a loving family situation that helps them to feel secure to explore their potential. Parents also benefit from being part of an extended family, knowing that they too have loving support to fulfil their roles.

The Aunties create a warm, inclusive safe-haven in which all feel welcomed and valued. Our strict policy of neutrality respects your prerogative as parents to raise your children according to your individual beliefs. We focus on developing your child’s inner person through decent core values such as empathy, kindness, perseverance, courage, resilience, and genuine growth mindset – whilst having LOTS OF FUN! Children are proactively persuaded to develop lively, enquiring, imaginative minds, engaged hearts, a ‘can do’ attitude with a real love and respect for life, learning, and people.

Our forest school trained staff kindly encourage children to appreciate the natural environment, and their need to care for it. We are a genuine outdoors nature nursery in ALL weathers, thoughtfully attiring children to embrace the elements as a sensory learning experience! The children are encouraged to be proactive recyclers, gardeners, wildlife watchers, and environmental caretakers. Such a positive atmosphere very successfully fosters individual talents and confidence and helps each child understand that we each have an important part to play in the fabric of life.

The Aunties’ philosophy is founded on a belief that children play and learn best with loving engagement. Laughing children learn! The Aunties teach each child to ‘dance joyously in the rain’- both literally and metaphorically. We believe children should be cheered on for trying their best, not only when they win. The Aunties strive to give both children and parents a delightful, never-to- be-forgotten experience of the precious and unique nursery and pre-school years.

The Aunties focus on ensuring the very best outcomes for children resulting in our being awarded “Outstanding” grades in ALL areas for more than three decades (our most recent Ofsted inspection being in May 2022).

We carefully select, supervise, and train staff to the highest levels to teach and develop children. The Aunties have been recognized, by Investors in People, as the world’s first Platinum Employer of the Year, out-ranking 14,000 organizations across 75 countries worldwide to achieve this prestigious award. Our commitment to optimal standards is also reflected in our having our own Cache-registered Training Centre (also consistently awarded top marks) to train our own staff as well as those in 30 others schools and settings across three counties. The Aunties deem it a priority to invest in ‘big people’ to inspire them to invest in our precious ‘little people’.

The Aunties’ focus on love and integrity to the children has invited rigorous scrutiny by various independent accreditation processes. As well as being consistently awarded top marks by Ofsted and Investors in People, The Aunties have also successfully participated in various well-regarded quality assurance schemes such as: ISO 14001, ISO 9001, and ISO 45001 Certification (international benchmarks for environmental commitment, quality management systems, and health and safety). The Aunties have also been presented with several “Excellence in Oxfordshire Awards” and twice been acknowledged by the House of Lords as industry leaders.

The Aunties are unique; exceptional at ensuring that outcomes for children are excellent. The education that the Aunties provide for pre-schoolers is considered to be of such high quality that the children make exceptional progress towards Early Learning Goals, often exceeding them. The Aunties’ childcare practice is considered to be “exemplary”.

It has been said: “The Aunties fill the world with love, giving children roots and wings!” Please come and see for yourself the inspired, loving and family-run approach that is unique to The Aunties.