Description:Lordswood Residential Nursery was the first of Birmingham’s residential nurseries, opening formally on 24th February 1928. The nursery accommodated 30 children aged 0 to 3 but was, at times, over capacity. In the First World War the building had been used as a VAD (voluntary aid detachment) Hospital.
In October 1939 the decision was taken to evacuate the 40 children in residence in the nursery, together with the staff.
A house was rented, on a short-term basis, in Overbury, Worcestershire. This Georgian building became known as Red House. It had its own kitchen garden, a large lawn and was surrounded by woods and fields. In the early 1950s, 25 children were accommodated. Because of its distance from the city, most of its residents were there on a long-term basis.
The original intention was that the move should last only for the duration of the war but the nursery never returned to Lordswood. In fact, in September 1945, a seven year lease was arranged for the property, and when that expired, another lease, this time for 5 years, was entered into due to expire in September 1957.
However, the lease was surrendered in 1954 as part of a reduction in residential nursery facilities which began with the closure of Perry Villa in 1953. At the time it was felt that the Red House premises were the least satisfactory of all those available being small and expensive to maintain.
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Image: Red House Nursery c.1947. Reproduced courtesy of Birmingham City Council.
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Source: This history was compiled by the Birmingham Children's Homes Project, an initiative to explore Birmingham City Council-run children’s homes between 1949 and 1990.