Playhood helps unite and reconnect the most important things in a family’s life. An award winning micro Montessori nursery school sits alongside a calm co-working space and a friendly community of parents.
We provide the space, knowledge and solidarity to enable working parents and their toddlers to thrive. Together, we’ll edge our members towards work-life harmony and the freedom it unlocks.
Leafy Crouch End, North London
9am-5pm, Monday-Thursday / 47 weeks of the year
Seven families per day
In 2023 we closed our waiting list because demand had far outstripped available places for 2023-5.
In 2025, our utopian nursery will close its door on Crouch End for the last time. We leave London for a new life in Brighton, and a new chapter of Playhood.
Given the unprecedented demand for places, if you are interested in developing your own Playhood, we offer a bespoke package of support and would love to chat.
Housed in our beautiful garden studio, Playhood’s outstanding nursery teachers welcome seven children aged 2-4 years old, each day. From our individualised care and freeflow garden to our exploratory cuisine, everything is child optimised.
We broaden the scope of the Montessori pedagogy by integrating elements of Forest School, Reggio Emilia and modern parenting discourse.
Our children enjoy a varied weekly routine: from garden yoga, drumming, and tending the vegetable patch, to visiting local museums and parent-led craft sessions. Our team has passion and expertise in creative play, emotional regulation and healthy lifestyles.
Next door (and out of earshot) within a Crouch End townhouse, our light and aerating plant-filled workspace provides all the amenities of a premium co-working office space.
With generous desks, ergonomic seating, terrace for sun or shade and all the tech, great coffee and healthy snacks parents need to thrive. Work and wellbeing go hand-in-hand here.
To save our busy members time, we provide a chef-prepared seasonal lunch (enjoyed with our teaching team) and weekly personal training sessions.
Our membership (combined with our alumni) provides a unique extended family and work team - a knowledgeable, friendly and professional network right on your doorstep.
The efficiencies go far beyond a reduction in commute times, spanning the sharing of everything from podcast recommendations and children’s bikes, to professional memberships and holiday homes.
Underpinned by a sense of solidarity and a commitment to the ‘give and take’ mentality, essential to a thriving community, our members have become firm friends, amongst which playdates, nights out and weekends away regularly feature on the calendar.
Awarded for Best UK Setting, Social Impact, Partnership with Parents
“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.
