N Family Club Nursery Schools / Kennedy Woods

N Family Club Nursery Schools / Kennedy Woods

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Text description provided by the architects. As the exclusive design partner for early years learning brand N Family Club, Kennedy Woods has launched 20 new nursery schools throughout London and the southeast. A whole-environment design strategy, which includes architecture, interiors, bespoke furniture, and joinery, is helping N Family Club transform early years education.

With every assessed nursery having received an Ofsted “Outstanding” rating, N has just topped the Nursery Chains 2022 Ofsted leaderboard. This demonstrates the value of a user-centered design approach.

Conversations with children, parents, teachers, and staff resulted in a design blueprint that has generated economies of scale and consistent brand identity. The design process, based on user research and close collaboration with NFC, uncovers opportunities to do things differently. It clarifies the needs of people being designed for, sparking innovative ideas that will work in practice.

In each project, Kennedy Woods celebrates the unique features of the existing host buildings, which have included churches, art galleries, offices, and townhouses. Through extensions, layout reorganizations, and new connections, the character of the original structures is drawn out, while creating inspiring spaces for small students to learn. 

These considerations of user experience and interaction alongside playful formal expression are a consistent feature of Kennedy Woods’ design approach.