Unity Montessori Nursery School

We have sent both our children to Unity now; our youngest has just left. We looked at a number of nurseries in the area but Unity was the best one for us. From the first time we met Alex, we knew this was the best place for originally our son and we did not hesitate to send our daughter afterwards. One of the big differences we found between Unity and the other Montessoris/nurseries is that as Alex owns Unity and runs it, you can see her passion for the development of the children come through. Her warmth and caring attitude to the children was reassuring for my wife and I. Alex and her team have an excellent knowledge of how to develop the children's skills for learning, including the vertical learning aspect, from which both our children have benefited greatly. The main hall has a variety of "stations" for the children to learn and explore, keeping the children challenged every day. Alex and her staff are always responsive to our many questions. The settling-in period is well considered and benefits the children in the long term. Via the Montessori My Child platform, we are regularly informed about what skills our children has developed that week, what goals they have achieved and what we can do at home with them to reinforce what they have learnt at Unity. Both our children left Unity ready to start Reception. The focus from Unity on learning how to learn is evident. We would recommend Unity to anyone that is looking to send their child to a kind, caring, safe and nurturing environment where their child will flourish. Positive Responsiveness, Reliability, Quality, Professionalism, Value

My son went this lovely boutique nursery for 2 and a half years and he graduated just today. We could not be more happy about our decision. We chose Unity for our son because of our friend's recommendations. We came from Turkey, and did not know much about education system or the neighbourhood. So, I asked my two Turkish friends who were living close by. Their daughters were going there and both families and kids were so happy. At that time, my son was able to speak only Turkish and I thought some Turkish friends might help too. During the settling in period, which is the hardest time for parents, Alex and Alena helped a lot. Especially for language learning phase. They cared and supported not only my son, me too as a first time mum who lives in a foreign country. They shared their experiences and confronted me about "trusting the process". And what I like most, although it is a boutique nursery, they are multicultural. Children learnt about different cultures and traditions including Chinese new year, Indian light festival, St Nicholas date and Ramadan. I got to chance to celebrate Eid-al Fitr and Eid-al Adha with kids every year. I read some books for them, we decorated the class and baked. I personally want to thank Alex again for giving me these beautiful memories and chance to share our special days and joy with other kids. In conclusion, it is hard to trust someone about your loved ones I know and you can trust them. Bonus, you yourself will have sincere friends too. Thank you again.

Our daughter has been with Unity for over 2 years. The level of support, not just for our daughter but us as first time parents has been phenomenal. In particular one teacher Alena, whose unwavering support and dedication to our child has set us and our daughter on a path that quite simply would not have been possible without her. Our gratitude for this can’t really be expressed properly here. But it’s this level of quality which sets this place apart. We wholeheartedly recommend this nursery for your child. Thank you to everyone at Unity.

Our daughter started at Unity in September. We were apprehensive about her settling in as she had not settled in at her previous nursery. All the staff at Unity are so warm and caring that within a few weeks our daughter was ready to say bye to us and confidently walk in on her own. We were so happy and surprised at how much she loved being there every day. Her speech and language had developed quickly and she has grown in confidence. We know she is well looked after and receive weekly updates on her progress. Thank you Alex and the team at Unity

We especially recommend it to those who are looking for a small nursery school or have children who are unfamiliar with English! We came to the UK at the end of 2020 as expats from Japan. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, I had a hard time finding a kindergarten for my daughters, who were 2 and 3 years old at the time. I was interested in Montessori education and my kids had to start from scratch with their English skills, so I was looking for a small school. As we contacted them via email, they immediately set up a tour and trial session. It was heartwarming to see 2- to 4-year-olds spending time in the same space helping each other without being separated by age. The teachers at Unity were very kind and looked after my two daughters and us parents, who didn't know the area much, warmly. The Unity's friends and families are all wonderful people, and I can't believe how much they helped me! Before my youngest child was born, they supported my daughter's suggestion that she wanted to make a pillow for her, and they thought about how to make her idea come true and help her grow. Our girls spent two years surrounded by lots of love and moved on to primary school full of confidence. They really feel ““Play is the work of the child.” Unfortunately, because we moved from England, our youngest daughter was unable to attend Unity, but we would have loved to have her attend Unity if possible. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, activities outside the Unity seemed to be restricted for a while, but from 2022, the children have been walking to nearby parks and exploring nature! Parents also had the opportunity to participate in birthdays, graduation events, seasonal events, and various religious events, and it was great to see their children grow and see precious things we couldn't see at home. Cooking and water play were also my daughters' favorite activities. I pray for the continued success of my beloved Unity members! Let's meet again!

When we started our search for a nursery, I visited most of the nurseries in and around the area. Unity stood out straight away. Honestly, we couldn’t have found a more perfect nursery for our daughter. So much so that we are so sad that our daughters time at Unity is coming to an end as she progresses to school, however, we are super excited, that our youngest will be joining Unity next year. Here are just some of the reasons why we would recommend Unity: - Safe and clean environment - The team are all overqualified, experienced, warm, caring, kind and truly passionate - Attention to detail and support they provide to all the children (and parents when needed) has been well beyond our expectations - The free flowing nature of the class and the vast number of stimulating activities available to the children. - Amazing communication, weekly updates and observations, and their newsletters. - The staff will always make time to have a 1-1 meeting if you ever wish to speak to them - The staff treat my daughter as if she was one of their own Above all my daughter has the most wonderful time and looks forward to going to nursery. Unity really is the most wonderful nursery, and we couldn’t recommend it more.

A most challenging review to write, only because it’s truly difficult to find the necessary words to fully express how incredible a nursery Unity is. My family, with our 3 year old little boy, arrived in London at the beginning of this year. Having previously sent our son to a Montessori nursery back home in South Africa and having witnessed the amazing growth he experienced there, we were intent on finding a similar experience for him here in North London. Before arriving in London, we had found and enrolled him at another nearby Montessori, but realised rather quickly, after several days of him being there, that it was not the ‘true’ Montessori experience we had expected or wanted for him. We did a quick Google search and stumbled upon Unity Montessori, which was also luckily quite near to us. A quick, impromptu meeting with Alex and visit to her lovely campus and our son was immediately enrolled at Unity. Needless to say our expectations these past 6 months have been more than exceeded. Whilst I haven’t personally visited every nursery in North London, I struggle to believe there could be any holistically superior to Unity Montessori. If for no other reason than the amazing staff who work there and the phenomenal care they provide for each and every child. It’s not long before you realise how invested they are in your child. Even though we received regular updates from the nursery, which we were truly grateful for, regardless of this we always knew and trusted in the fact that the care he was receiving was second to none. The growth our child has experienced during his short 6 month stint at Unity has been nothing short of unbelievable. Every aspect of his being - emotionally, physically and mentally - has improved in bounds. If you’re in search of the very best nursery for your child and are lucky enough to live nearby to Unity, sending them there is a no-brainer. If you don’t live nearby, it’s worth the trek! Enrolling your child at this nursery is truly the very best start you can give your child in life. Our only regret is that our son could not stay for longer. Thank you Alex, Alena (our child’s primary teacher) and the rest of the incredible teachers at Unity!

We relocated with our 2 year old daughter from Germany to London in 2018. She was bilingual, but spoke more German than English at that time. Unity helped her to develop her language skills, feeling safe and well cared for in a foreign country, finding new friends and belonging to a lovely "home away from home" - that is was Unity was for all three of us and still is. She had fun playing and learning indoors and outdoors, she developed amazing skills (crafts, reading, counting, team work, learning about other cultures and languages, logical thinking, sewing etc.) and went to nursery with a big smile on her face every day. We never had the feeling that she would not be safe or happy there. She even wanted to skip the closing days/holidays. :) When looking for Nurseries and in particular for Montessori Nurseries I visited two other places in Finchley and had a totally different feeling when being there and I did not want them to care for our daughter. Montessori is a lovely concept, but you need special educated and trained teachers. Unity has many of them and all of them are amazing and work well und super organised as a team. They are amazing teachers and very kind human beings. Our daughter went to a similar setting in Germany and we were so glad that we found a similar place in London. Our love for animals, the environment, foreign languages (they even have Spanish sessions there!), being outdoors and active she could experience at Unity a lot. A lovely park for playing and outdoor teaching is not far away and during summer the teachers installed water play, shady areas and many other cool things at Nursery. Playing outdoors in this lovely and quiet green area of London was something we wished for our daughter to experience. And she loved being able to go outside in every season and weather to let off steem or to just have a chat with a teacher or a friend outside. Sometimes they helped a snail or a bird, had a look at insects or just enjoyed caring for the little plants and veggies they are growing there. Our daughter turned 5 this year and began school. The transition was not hard at all - she misses her friends and teachers. BUT we could see that she left Unity after her 2.5 years there with so much confidence in herself and so much joy for learning, that she was ready for being a school girl. She uses many of the Montessori theories and skills at home as well. With many of the other families we are still friends with and we hope to visit Unity again one day to say "Hello" again. Thanks for everything and we hope, that many other children will be able to be a part of Unity in the future. Positive Responsiveness, Reliability, Quality, Professionalism, Value

Unity Montessori is a truly lovely little oasis set in Woodside Park. Many nurseries purport to be Montessori or Montessori inspired. At Unity, all the teachers are fully qualified Montessorians and this is truly reflected in the teachings and day to day care. The children are gently encouraged to find independence and this helps them to build confidence and we have seen the growth and development in our own child. She loves going to nursery and on weekends, we often get asked "why is nursery not open today" and "mummy, can I go to nursery on the weekend too". I believe it is very telling when a child actually wants to attend nursery! There is an outdoor courtyard and the children are allowed to choose activities indoors or outdoors regardless of the weather - they have full autonomy. In a day and age of electronic immersement, it is lovely that there is a strong emphasis on outdoor play. The teachers are very patient, welcoming and kind. They are nurturing, engaging and encouraging and it is clearly visible in the way the children respond to them. These formative years are so important to young children developing their confidence and life skills and I am truly grateful we were blessed enough to have been recommended to Unity by a dear neighbour and friend.

After having relocated to the area we were looking for a nursery that would help our sons development and we’re really REALLY happy to have found Unity Montessori. The staff is very professional, caring and attentive. They seem to notice any changes in our child's behaviour which is then always relayed back to us. We find the teachers really encourage 2 way dialogue with us and try to be as involved as they can . We were surprised how quickly our son settled in - having had some issues in the past- and is now excited to go in every morning. Its been an amazing journey to see the progress he's made since he started in March. Would strongly recommend this nursery! Positive Responsiveness, Reliability, Quality, Professionalism, Value