It is 9am and nursery manager Michelle Shaw is in her office, eating toast at her desk as a buzzer repeatedly blares. She reaches above her head to lift a phone receiver. “Push the gate,” she says between bites, as parents begin to drop off their children for the morning session. The buzzer goes again.…

Tucked between two high-rise blocks of flats in Wolverhampton — a city in central England — the Little Village Nursery hums with activity. The joyful sounds of children at play fill the air. Especially in the “home” corner, where the children pretend to grocery shop, cook meals, or serve orders in a cafe. But instead…