Session types
Full day, Term-time only (9:00 am - 3:00 pm)
LEYF - Soho Nursery & Pre-School
Ofsted: Good
(Oct 2023)
Number of places
40 places
Age range
1–4 yrs
Last inspected
Oct 2023
Local authority
Westminster
About this day nursery
LEYF Soho Nursery and Pre-School provides early years education and childcare for children aged birth to 5 years. Located in the vibrant heart of Soho, close to Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square stations, the nursery offers a unique and intimate setting with dedicated spaces for various age groups, including a hidden underground garden.
The curriculum is child-led, with daily activities spanning acting, dance, filmmaking, cooking, gardening, science, and woodwork. Children also benefit from excursions to local attractions like the National Gallery.
All meals are prepared on-site by a trained chef, catering to diverse dietary needs with healthy, adventurous recipes. The nursery also offers term-time-only sessions from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, and actively seeks to engage children in community work and expressive arts.
The nursery emphasises a nurturing, inspiring, brave, and fun environment, ensuring children develop rapidly in language, movement, and social skills.
Our ethos
At LEYF, all staff live our values. We are brave, curious, bold and adventurous, pushing boundaries and testing new ideas, always standing up for the rights of children. We are inspiring, encouraging continuous development for children and staff, and challenging each other to question and explore. We are nurturing, warm, caring, loving and welcoming, creating safe and homely environments for each child. We are also fun, imaginative and creative, and learn through play.
What it's like
Children separate from parents happily, greeted by friendly staff and encouraged to self-register. They immerse themselves in activities like breathing exercises, meditation, and yoga, which helps them remain calm and interact positively with peers and adults. Staff build on children's interests and knowledge to plan a purposeful curriculum, helping children develop crucial skills for their next stage of learning.
Good Ofsted ratingChef on siteUnderground gardenTerm-time only sessions availableChild-led activities
Pricing & funding
Funding accepted
15 hours — working parents (9 months–2 yrs)15 hours — eligible 2-year-olds15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)30 hours — working parents (3–4 yrs)
Pricing on request
This nursery doesn't publish its fees online. Contact them directly for an up-to-date price list and availability.
Request pricing →Key facts
Food
Chef on site; all meals provided according to LEYF’s healthy recipes, catering for dietary requirements and allergies
Opening hours
08:00 - 18:00
Age range
Birth to 5 years
Term time / All Year
All Year
Ofsted Inspection
Ofsted rating for LEYF - Soho Nursery & Pre-School
Last inspected 24 October 2023
Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good
What it's like to attend
Children separate from parents happily, greeted by friendly staff and encouraged to self-register. They immerse themselves in activities like breathing exercises, meditation, and yoga, which helps them remain calm and interact positively with peers and adults. Staff build on children's interests and knowledge to plan a purposeful curriculum, helping children develop crucial skills for their next stage of learning.
Inspector highlights
- Staff have created an interactive 'managing emotions' display that supports children to manage their emotions, enhancing their ability to co-regulate and self-regulate positively.
- Staff introduce children to a range of songs and stories where children learn new vocabulary and ask questions to develop critical thinking skills.
- Managers provide staff with monthly training to support and develop their practice, including regular coaching and mentoring from room leaders.
- The SENCO works closely with the local authority inclusion team to support staff and parents to meet the needs of children with SEND, enabling staff to recognise and implement appropriate strategies.
- Children enjoy exploring different food from around the world in the home corner, encouraging discussions about food from different cultures and confidently discussing the food they eat at home.
Areas to develop
- 1allow children more time to reflect and respond to questions
- 2maximise opportunities for children to take appropriate risks and challenges to enhance their physical resilience skills further.
Inspection #10305447 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report
Inclusion & environment
How they support every child
SEND provision
Staff feel they are able to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) more effectively by seeking support from the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). The SENCO works closely with the local authority inclusion team to support staff and parents to meet the needs of children with SEND. This enables staff to recognise children's needs and implement appropriate strategies to support children with SEND to make good progress.
Outdoor space
Staff plan activities that enable children to practise developing a wide range of skills, such as climbing, balancing and jumping. However, at times, staff do not plan opportunities that provide children with further challenge to enhance their physical development skills.
Parent Reviews of LEYF - Soho Nursery & Pre-School
4.2
(21)
Mark Forrest
4 months ago
Our son thrived during his time at LEYF Soho. It has been such a joy to watch his development there, supported by a team that is consistently attentive, friendly, and professional. We are especially grateful for the flexibility the nursery showed us whenever we needed to change or add extra days—it made life as working parents so much easier. A special shout-out must go to Manika, who cared for and nurtured our son with such genuine kindness. Greg, the manager, is truly brilliant at his job. He has created a fantastic environment, and his passion for early years development is abundantly clear in everything the nursery does. We couldn't have asked for a better start for our son!
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Reina Inoguchi
8 months ago
I have sent two of my children and they enjoyed so much here. They made sure that my daughter could write all the alphabets and numbers, and spell some words before she moved on to school, which was very helpful. The staff members are lovely. I liked how they did a lot of cooking(baking) as well. She enjoyed drama lessons and some short nursery trips. It was so lovely.
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Tina Bangs
9 months ago
This place is an oasis amongst bustling Soho. The staff are incredible. They’re warm, approachable and very caring and nurturing towards the kids. The nursery has a very down to earth and hands on approach and feeling and you know that once you’ve dropped them off you can let go and concentrate on the day ahead knowing your kids are well taken care of. My toddler has positively thrived in their care. I highly recommend.
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Kate Craggs
8 months ago
Our son has been at Soho for 8 months and he has come on so much. The staff are so caring and nurturing - he absolutely loves it. All the meals are prepared fresh on site, and the staff really care about giving the kids diverse and stimulating sensory activities. It's so convenient for parents working centrally and we can't recommend it enough.
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Anu Dey
9 months ago
My toddler have had the best experience at this nursery…. really kind and friendly staff. She will be graduating soon and we really gonna miss this nursery, she had the most amazing time of her earlier years .
Read on GoogleReviews from Google for LEYF - Soho Nursery & Pre-School. See all on Google Maps
Inspection history
Date: December 2014
- October 2023Good
- February 2018Good
- December 2014Good
Frequently asked about LEYF - Soho Nursery & Pre-School
About the setting
Soho Family Centre Nursery registered in 2014 and is situated in the London Borough of Westminster. The nursery employs 11 members of childcare staff, with nine holding suitable qualifications at level 3. The nursery is open all year round from 7.30am to 6.30pm and provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.
- URN
- EY473676
- Registered person
- The London Early Years Foundation
- Day care type
- Full day care
- Register
- Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register
- Establishment type
- Childcare on non-domestic premises
- Previous rating
- Good
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