Mallards Wood Daycare & Preschool 159 Saint Barnabas Road, Woodford, Woodford Green IG8 7DG

"This is a tough one to write. Our son had a really lovely time here for three months, and he was well-supported by his primary carer, Holly. He always loved going in and came out happy and fulfilled. However, management is cloth-eared and over-aggressive. Trying to run a nursery like a failing business and 'fining' or stonewalling parents for not making payments when they've raised a legitimate question about billing is not acceptable. We made a very sad decision to withdraw our son after one to many unnecessarily difficult encounters with the nursery manager. I think this may be why some of the other reviews reference a 'scam' - it's not, but that might unfortunately be your experience."

"This place is an absolute scam. The owner Louise is untrustworthy and deceitful. I have experienced a scam of £3400 from Louise, the property owner of 157-159 St Barnabas Road this August. I had paid the £3400 to extend the period to live in her property. Yet at last I was unable to stay through that period of time. Louise promised to refund me if anyone rented during that period I have paid. But every month when I emailed her, her response was always saying that they were doing some sort of calculation. Until December 2022, Louise replied and said she spent all my money because of her own financial situation. The experience was absolutely awful and outrageously ridiculous. Until now Louise still didn’t send me any plan of action or the amount of money that she will be paying me back after 3 months of “calculation”. I would definitely not recommend anyone to have any deals or trust with this group nor the property owner. If any parents are looking for a trustworthy environment for their kids to learn, please rethink your plan before you pay. As the owner fails her promises all the time."

"I have two children at Mallards Wood. The nursery has a real family feel due to the intimate setting & the staff, who are always extremely friendly, approachable & enthusiastic. You can tell they really care about the children from the way they engage with them, but also the way in which my children respond to & talk about the staff, who they have both formed strong bonds with. The activities are diverse, creative & engaging, whilst also helping with the children’s learning & development. Any issues we have had have always been dealt with swiftly & professionally. Meals are made on site & are varied & healthy. What really sets the nursery apart is the way in which staff always go the extra mile. From Birthday parties, to summer fetes, graduation ceremonies & ways of communicating & engaging with pupils & parents during lockdown – the time, effort & consideration the staff put in is priceless."

"This is one of the most expensive nurseries I have sent my daughter to. One would think with the price tag comes excellent treatment, communication and education. It was the complete opposite. They treated my daughter very poorly, said things like ‘she cannot read or write her name’ in front of her, which is not true. Put her in the baby room to eat lunch to teach her a lesson after acting like normal 3 year olds can do some times. When I asked her keyworker for feedback about her day at pick up times the response was ‘she’s old enough to give you the feedback herself’. I was assured a report on how she was settling in by the owner and never received one until the day I decided to pull her out, they are now refusing to give us our deposit back. I’m truly disappointed and would not recommend this nursery to any parent wishing to send their child here."

"I'm really surprised to read what the previous reviewer as written as I don't recognise any of the things she has written in my experience of Mallards Woods. It would be interesting to know whether her experience is as a parent or staff. Anyway back to my review - I am currently a parent of an almost 3 year old who has been at Mallards Wood since she was 9 months old and I have found Mallards Wood to be very good! Right from the start of her settling in period till now, I found the staff very engaging and really good at keeping me abreast of her day and everything she'd been up to. They have been very quick to receive and respond to feedback which is always good to see in this type of establishment. All my daughters key workers have showed a genuine interest in her welfare and her development. Unlike my previous experience with the nursery my older son went to, they have formal reports on development, parents evening and even school trips! My daughter thoroughly enjoyed being taken to Paradise Park and Colchester Zoo in the last 2 years! Another thing that they do that I like is how they make learning fun - for my daughter's age, I know there is no structured learning but suddenly in what seem to be a blink of an eye, she knew her colours. So far I haven’t had any negative experience and would whole heartedly recommend the nursery to any of my friends or family that need childcare."