At Playhood we’re innovating the Montessori nursery school to meet the needs of working families and talented Educators.

MEMBERSHIP & fees

nursery school

Housed in our garden Studio, our outstanding Montessori nursery team welcome 7 children aged around 2-4 each day.

Education

co-working space

Next door (and out of earshot) housed in a Crouch End townhouse, our work space provides all the amenities of a flexible shared office.

Gallery

community

Our Membership creates an extended family and work team for the remote-worker - a powerful support network right on your doorstep.

community

A typical day at Playhood nursery & co-working community

AM

[9am] Families arrive at Studio.
Morning greeting and mindful moment together at which point parents say goodbye.
Children begin their work cycle, either indoors or outdoors, choosing anything from vegetable growing to salt dough crafting.
Parents settle down to coffee and work in the tranquility of Home, hidden from their children’s gaze by our garden.

Lunch

A freshly prepared lunch made from quality, natural ingredients is served.
Parents and Educators meet to discuss a Montessori-framed topic e.g. tweaks at home to enable greater independence.
Younger children nap whilst older children venture to local amenities such as Hornsey Library or the Parkland Walk.

PM

Children engage in a group activity which might be a music class, parent led clay modelling or yoga.
A freshly-prepared light snack is served.
Late afternoon wind down begins with cosy story-telling and gentle music.
A subgroup of parents might meet to discuss a community initiative.
[5pm] Parents arrive at Studio for pickup and goodbyes.

Our story ⟶

meet Karen ⟶

meet Laura ⟶

meet Varvara ⟶

Partners

“A sustainable, collective, and inclusive initiative that epitomises the optimum partnership between school and home.”

– Collaborative Montessori Accreditation Report.

“Playhood created a magical place for children to grow and explore… incomparable to any other nursery and as an experienced childcare professional I cannot recommend it enough.”

– Staff member.

“The Playhood team is passionate about supporting parents and parents are closely involved in their children's learning”

– OFSTED Report.

“Thanks to its unique set-up, staff at Playhood are able to extend their relationships with families over and beyond what is expected by an Early Years setting, establishing both strong professional and personal connections.”

— Collaborative Montessori Accreditation Report.

“Playhood is extremely special. It has changed my son’s life so much, but also my life. Through Playhood I have found the support, help, resources, stimulation, and community that I needed to empower me as a parent”.

— A, parent member.

“It’s been eye-opening to get to be so involved in [our daughter’s] education, the Montessori method and work with the team on our big life stage moments”.

- H, parent member.

“This community is so valuable to us and Playhood has been the best parenting and work decision we’ve made”.

— S, parent member.

“The Playhood model is so exciting, I’ve been in awe of the team breaking new ground: creating a supportive community the parents actively participate in.”

- Marie Henry, Early Years Standards Consultant

“Genuine parent partnership is crucial in Early Years because consulting them about children’s early experiences helps practitioners plan for effective learning at the setting, and in turn helps them support parents . Playhood provides responsive solutions, pushing the boundaries, and we are keen to engage in ongoing learning from the model, of which we think there is much potential.”

- Melanie Widnall Head of Early Years, Principal Advisor, Haringey Council

“Playhood takes a sensitive, informed and caring approach to working with whole families. Our role will be to connect practitioners to disseminate the Playhood team's knowledge for the benefit of the sector as a whole.”

- Barbara Isaacs, President, Montessori Europe.