Our nurseries

40 award-winning nurseries in London

We support children’s development through the LEYF Pedagogy, our teaching and learning model, so children become enthusiastic, curious and independent learners and global citizens.

This means combining fun-filled days with a secure daily routine and lots of conversations and activities, both indoors and outdoors. Our teaching will build your child’s confidence and help them learn to make friends and understand their place in the world.

In the nursery

Children learn through play. Our staff are trained to understand that and provide wonderful learning experiences every day. We use a range of teaching strategies to engage and extend children’s learning. This includes observing, modelling, questioning, narrating and creative discovering.

Our teachers know when to engage children in conversation and when to stand back and let them discover the world by themselves. Activities include messy play, yoga and nature walks.

Safe, fit and healthy

At LEYF, food matters! Mealtimes are a family experience and all the children are encouraged to serve themselves and enjoy the food and conversation.

Chefs are trained at our Early Years Chef Academy and are essential members of the nursery team. Our chefs understand children’s specific nutritional needs, portion size and presentation, encouraging children to be adventurous in their tastes. All our menus are assessed by qualified nutritionists and scientifically supported. As a result, our children are excited to try new foods. Children love the baking and cooking activities chefs do with them.

Health is not just about food. Children need to be active. We ensure our children enjoy a minimum of two hours of physical activity a day either in our nursery garden or in a local park. Children need to play outdoors. It gives them unstructured time to think, explore and take risks safely supervised by our staff. We also provide yoga and mindfulness sessions so that our children learn to describe, understand and manage their emotions.

In the community

Our nurseries are part of their local communities. Children are welcome visitors to libraries, museums, farms and markets, and often participate in local festivals.

We invite parents, grandparents, elderly neighbours and key people in the community, such as the police, into our nurseries so that children build multi-generational relationships.

Our teams

Our teachers are highly qualified and trained. LEYF Training Academy provides qualifications, including to degree level, to ensure staff are consistently at the forefront of Early Years good practices and children’s development. By investing in our people and their training, LEYF staff stay with us for longer, are promoted internally and as a result are more invested in their Early Years career.

By investing in our staff, we are investing in your child.

Settling in

Your settling-in period begins on day one. When you arrive, your child’s key person will welcome you, show you around the nursery and answer any questions you have.

Your child’s key person will be your first point of contact. They will give you regular updates at drop off and pick up, as well as formal progress checks every few months.

Come and explore

The best way to find out if a LEYF nursery is right for your child and your family is to arrange a visit! Search to find your nearest nursery; we’d be delighted to meet you.