Raphael Nursery Clapham

12 Poynders Road, London SW4 8NY
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Top 20 award
10 42 Reviews
  • Raphael Nursery Clapham, London
Raphael Nursery is a group of award-winning bilingual French nurseries. The setting is a family-owned nursery located in Clapham South at the edge of Abbeville village. The nursery welcomes children aged between 3 months and 5 years old. They open 51 weeks a year from 8.00am to 6.00pm.

They provide a living culture and creative exploration through the eyes of the child. By building on Montessori methods and linguistic arts, they have developed their unique curriculum. As a result, they prepare a child to excel in their foundation years. Children can then move through life with a strong ability to achieve excellence.

Your child’s early years are vital. They are the foundation for thinking, language, vision, attitudes and aptitudes. This is the perfect time for children to learn foreign languages. At Raphael Nursery, teachers are French and English. These early years are ideal for a teacher to guide a child’s willingness and ability to learn. In the French nursery, bilingualism helps children to make sense of the world around them. It also helps them to discover the joy of communication.

Furthermore, Montessori is a dynamic international education platform. Through continuous observation and tailored approach, they strive to meet each child’s needs. By meeting physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional, children therefore grow with excitement. In the bilingual French Montessori nursery, children blossom.

Finally, a high level of academic achievement is a natural outcome in most Montessori schools and nurseries because of the supportive environment. All children are born with a curiosity to discover new things. They are indeed eager to try and develop new skills in the world around them. Raphael Nursery combines Montessori methods and early teaching of a foreign language. This therefore equips the children with the right tools to thrive in their development within the bilingual French nursery.
Show Raphael Nursery Clapham on the Map

Type of Service

  • Day Nursery
  • Open all year
  • Full Day Care
  • Sessional Day Care

Group/Owner

Person in Charge

  • Colette Creasy (Manager)

Number of Childcare Staff

  • 16

Total Places for Children

  • 40

Age Range

  • from 0 years 3 months
  • to 5 years 0 months

Funding & Fees

  • Please contact us for our fees, they are on our Brochure. We offer 3 days to 5 days. No half day sessions due to bilingualism.

Opening Times

  • Monday 08:00-18:00
    Tuesday 08:00-18:00
    Wednesday 08:00-18:00
    Thursday 08:00-18:00
    Friday 08:00-18:00

When Closed

  • Bank Holidays

Raphael Nursery Clapham Reviews (42)

10

Raphael Nursery Clapham has a Review Score of 10 (9.992) out of 10, based on 20 reviews in the last 2 years.
Over all time Raphael Nursery Clapham has 42 reviews.

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Review from Rebecca B (Mother of Child) published on 3 December 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I cannot speak highly enough of this wonderful bilingual English-French nursery! My daughter has attended since she was one year old, and at 3.5 she still walks in smiling every morning. The staff are warm, thoughtful, and genuinely invested in each child's wellbeing. The bilingual environment has been
incredible - she's picked up French so naturally through songs, stories, and everyday play.
She has grown in confidence, independence, and curiosity thanks to the stimulating, creative activities and the nurturing atmosphere the team create every day. Communication is excellent, management are caring and fabulous, and I always feel she is in the safest, kindest hands.
We are so grateful for the love and stability this nursery has given our family. I couldn't recommend it more!
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Review from Anna C (Mother of Child) published on 2 December 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We moved our daughter from a different nursery to Raphael over a year ago now and we truly couldn't be happier with our decision. From the very first day, the staff have been so warm and welcoming. My daughter goes in to nursery every morning with such excitement to see the staff and her friends. We
are kept really well informed of how she is doing and we are so impressed with the progress she is making. I really highly recommend Raphael!
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Review from Lucinda B (Mother of Child) published on 2 December 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
My husband and I couldn't speak highly enough about Raphael Nursery. My daughter started at 1 years old and was there through to starting school last year and my son is now in the Pre-School room having also started at 1 years old, so we have been Raphael parents for over 5 years! Right from the beginning
we were confident that we had chosen the right nursery for our children as the staff are unbelievably caring, supportive and nurturing. As well as starting to learn another language, our children are confident, kind, social and excellent communicators, thanks to their time at Raphael.
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Review from Olga P (Mother of Child) published on 1 December 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Very warm French-English nursery. My son has been attending this nursery for almost a year, and we absolutely love Raphael nursery. All the teachers and the entire management team know all the children by name almost from day one. My son loves all the food, soups, pies, pastas, fruits, veggies, etc.
Thanks a lot
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Review from Sarah M (Mother of Child) published on 28 November 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We couldn't be happier with our experience at Raphael Nursery. The staff are incredibly kind, attentive, and genuinely invested in our daughter's development and wellbeing. The environment is bright, clean, and welcoming, with plenty of activities that keep her engaged and excited to learn and explore.
We receive daily updates on how she is getting on and are they always take the time to discuss progress and milestones. My daughter runs into nursery each morning. I highly recommend this nursery to any parent looking for a safe, nurturing, and joyful place for their child.
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Review from S T (Mother of Child) published on 18 November 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Both of my children attended Raphael nursery from the age of 10 months through to when they started at school and it was the best choice we ever made sending them there. The nursery is amazing with genuinely lovely staff who are professional, caring and really take time to build relationships with the
children and the parents. The blend of French and English learning was of huge benefit to our children and we cannot recommend it highly enough!
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Review from Lavanya R (Mother of Child) published on 11 November 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Without doubt one of the best nurseries in the area. What sets Raphael apart is how caring and attentive the staff are, and how invested they are in each child's development. My daughter attended the nursery for 18 months and thrived there. I would not hesitate to recommend the nursery to others in
the neighbourhood.
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Review from Phoebe W (Foster Parent of Child) published on 3 November 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We cannot rate Raphael Nursery highly enough, and would recommend it to any parent looking for a safe and stimulating childcare environment. Both our 1 year old and 3 year old attended the nursery. The staff are very kind and patient with the children, creating a caring and considerate environment for
the children to evolve in. There is a lot of time taken to give personal and in-person feedback on each child at the end of the day, which gives parents a lot of reassurance in how their child is growing, learning and living with their peers. There was a lot of room for indoor activities but also outdoor play and the children were taken out to the local park nearby regularly (in good weather). Communication was always swift and easy, and every effort was made to make us feel welcome straight from the start. We are very grateful to everyone at Raphael Nursery for their care and dedication.
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Review from Rackie K (Mother of Child) published on 24 October 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
It's been just two months since my son started at Raphael Nursery Clapham after growing up in a fully French-speaking environment, and I'm honestly amazed by how quickly he's picked up English! His English vocabulary is growing every day, and his French keeps getting stronger too thanks to the wonderful
French-speaking teachers. I'm blown away by how much he learns and how happy he is to go every morning. The whole team is so kind, caring, and dedicated - thank you all for creating such a warm and inspiring place for the kids
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Review from Christine M (Mother of Child) published on 18 August 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
An exquisite, nurturing and genuinely caring team who has looked after my daughter since she was seven months old up until now, just before reception! The nursery staff encourage children to become confident and autonomous through lots of fun activities, to develop empathy and responsibility by looking
after the nursery pets and to be creative using their imagination! My daughter was happy to go to Raphael Nursery every single morning and I always knew that she's in very good hands! Extra bonus, children are immersed in both English and French!
Finally, the management team as well as the practitioners are approachable and children's safety is their priority.
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Review from Lauren D (Mother of Child) published on 31 July 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
This nursery was an absolute godsend. I was so anxious about sending our daughter to nursery but it has been the best thing ever. The staff are absolutely amazing and they feel like family to us. We are leaving London otherwise we'd live in the area just to be able to send her to this nursery. Thank
you so, so much for the easy transition back to work as we knew our daughter was so happy to come to the nursery everyday. We will miss you and I can't praise you enough.
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Review from Victoire S (Mother of Child) published on 10 October 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I cannot recommend Raphael Nursery Clapham highly enough. I felt I had to write this review as our daughter just left the nursery to enter school earlier this month and she had the most wonderful experience at Raphael over the last 3 years. The nursery owner, manager, co-manager, and all the staff do
a wonderful job of raising kind children ready for school. My daughter has always enjoyed going there, she has created great connections both with other children and staff and learned lots of fun things. We are so grateful to all the staff.
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Review from F H (Mother of Child) published on 8 October 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
A wonderful nursery! Thanks for everything!
My child was very happy there and we hope we will be back in London to get the chance to have to place.
My child learned a lot and became independent so fast!
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Review from C D (Mother of Child) published on 17 September 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We are incredibly grateful for the care and support our three children received at Raphael Nursery. The staff are warm, welcoming, and dedicated, creating a nurturing environment where our kids have thrived. From fun, engaging activities to tailored learning, it's been wonderful to see our children
grow in confidence, creativity, and social skills. The regular updates and thoughtful communication gave us peace of mind knowing they were in the best hands. We highly recommend Raphael Nursery to any parent looking for a loving, supportive, and inspiring place for their little ones.
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Review from Charlie W (Father of Child) published on 16 September 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Cannot recommend Raphael Nursery highly enough. The care and love everyone, be they classroom staff, office staff or kitchen staff has shown our 20-month-old son in the time he has been with them has been far more than we could ever hoped for. Our son has thrived in their care and developed so much.
Particularly useful is the basic sign language he's been taught. Communication between staff and parents is great, both at collection and through online end-of-day reports and they are always very flexible and very keen to accommodate any changes to schedule. He has picked up some French comprehension and words alongside his English. You won't regret your child attending Raphael's.
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Review from Bea F (Mother of Child) published on 5 September 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Simply amazing! Our daughter started when she was 10 months old, now she is 4 years old and about to leave to start school. We want to take the opportunity to thank the amazing and caring staff, you have been so crucial throughout our experience and will always stay in her heart!
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Review from M G (Mother of Child) published on 8 March 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Our daughter went to Raphael Nursery when she was 6 months old until she started school (now 5yo), while our son has been attending for the last 2 years (now 2.5yo).
Both our children and us as parents have had and continue to have an outstanding experience with Raphael Nursery, thanks to its caring
and devoted staff. Our children have enjoyed going every day and have been able to develop both their English and French speaking competencies.
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Review from Amandine H (Mother of Child) published on 8 March 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Our eldest son attended Raphael Nursery from 9 months old all the way to pre-school and he was so happy to go in every day that it was obvious our second son would go there too! This time from 6 months old and still very happy 2 years later. We really appreciate the kindness of the staff, their flexibility
and their dedication to making the nursery a better place every single year (full refurbishment, dedicated sleeping room for babies, new toys etc). And now enjoying even more all the activities offered to them, from Mondays dancing to yoga sessions, trips to the park etc. And I almost forgot the bilingual staff, such a bonus! Guess where we will be sending our third little one?
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Review from Cecile R (Mother of Child) published on 1 March 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Our daughter has been attending the nursery for almost 3 years and very much enjoys it. We appreciate the familial atmosphere and the care given to her. We also like the pedagogic approach, promoting autonomy and curiosity. The bilingual aspect is a plus, as she can be exposed to French during activities.
Highly recommend!
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Review from Marc T (Father of Child) published on 17 January 2024 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Both my son (4) and my daughter (3) have been through Raphael Nursery and I can say without a doubt that it was one of the best experiences for both of them and for us. Their French continued to improve every day they spent at the nursery and above all they would go in every day with a smile. Bearing
in mind our daughter has been going since before she was 1, full time from 8 am until 6 pm, it's quite a feat to have kept her entertained and always happy to go every day!
The staff are lovely, wonderfully marshalled by the manager and it always felt like a very happy place. They've been so accommodating these last 4 years with late drop-offs and early pick-ups, we're not sure how we'll cope at school!
We've also been lucky enough to make friends for life with some of the parents. It's a genuine mix of nationalities with lots of French parents but also plenty of non-French speaking parents who want to give their kids a good foundation in another language. I couldn't recommend Raphael Nursery more highly!
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Current Review Score: 10.0 (9.992)

Overview of Review Score

The Review Score of 10 (9.992) out of 10 for Raphael Nursery Clapham is based on a) the Average Rating and b) the number of positive Reviews.

  1. The Average Rating is 5.0 out of 5 from 20 Reviews in the last 24 months.
  2. The score for the number of positive Reviews is 5.0 out of 5 from 20 positive Reviews in the last 24 months.

Detailed Breakdown of Review Score

The maximum Review Score for a Day Nursery is 10, which is made up from the Average Rating of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) and the Number of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) in the last 24 months:

  1. 5 Points are available for the Average Rating from all Reviews in the last 24 months. The Average Rating of 4.992 for Raphael Nursery Clapham is calculated as follows: ( (238 Excellents x 5) + (2 Goods x 4) ) ÷ 240 Ratings = 4.992
  2. 5 Points are available for the number of Positive Reviews in the last 24 months. A Positive Review is defined as any Review with an 'Overall Experience' of '4' or '5' (out of a max rating '5'). The 5 Points relating to the number of positive Reviews for Raphael Nursery Clapham is based on 20 positive Reviews in the last 24 months and is calculated as per below:

    The 5 points available are broken down as follows:

    1. 4 points are available for the first 10 Positive Reviews in the last 24 months; 3 points for the first Positive Review, and then 0.125 Points for each of the next four Positive Reviews and then 0.1 Points for the next five Positive Reviews. (1st = 3.000, 2nd = 0.125, 3rd = 0.125, 4th = 0.125, 5th = 0.125, 6th = 0.100, 7th = 0.100, 8th = 0.100, 9th = 0.100, 10th = 0.100) 3 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 = 4
    2. 1 point is available for the number of Positive Reviews reaching 20% of the number of registered child places in the last 24 months. If this number is partially reached, then that proportion of 1 point is given. eg a Day Nursery registered for a maximum of 50 child places has to reach 10 Positive Reviews to receive 1 point, if it has 7 reviews it will receive 0.7 points. 20% of the 40 number of registered child places is 8, which has been reached with 20 Positive reviews. Points = 1
  3. When a Review is submitted by someone who has previously submitted a Review, only the latest Review will count towards the Review Score.
  4. If a Day Nursery does not have a review in the last 24 months, then it will not have a Review Score.

Child Vacancies

Please contact us for latest vacancies.

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Awards / Recognitions (4)

Meet the Team (0)

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Frequently Asked Questions about Raphael Nursery Clapham

What is the Age Range of Children that Raphael Nursery Clapham accepts?

Raphael Nursery Clapham accepts Children aged from 0 years 3 months to 5 years 0 months.

What Days & Hours is Raphael Nursery Clapham Open?

Raphael Nursery Clapham is open: Monday 08:00-18:00, Tuesday 08:00-18:00, Wednesday 08:00-18:00, Thursday 08:00-18:00, Friday 08:00-18:00.

How many Children does Raphael Nursery Clapham have capacity for?

Raphael Nursery Clapham has capacity for a total of 40 Children.

How far is Raphael Nursery Clapham to the centre of London?

3.7 mile(s) as the crow flies, distance by road may be significantly further.

Information on this page is displayed without responsibility for its accuracy on the part of daynurseries.co.uk. Please contact Raphael Nursery Clapham to verify any information. View our terms and conditions. Raphael Nursery Clapham has an Enhanced Service - more info.