• The Avenue is nurturing, child centred and developmentally aware, and aims to give young children a happy, secure and confident first experience of school.

• Will suit families seeking a gentle, well-organised Highgate start to school where young children can settle confidently and be known well.

Admissions at The Avenue are unusually direct and family friendly, with the school openly describing itself as non-selective and allowing children to join from the term they turn three if spaces are available. The school should suit parents who want a gentle, organised early-years route into school rather than a hard-edged competitive prep admission process.

Scholarships are not really the point at this stage. The attraction is the school’s non-selective, nurturing early-years environment and the secure foundation it aims to give children before they move on.

The overall picture is warm, child centred and clearly focused on the nursery and pre-prep years, with the school setting out a straightforward journey from pre-nursery through to Year 2. Parents should still visit because the decisive question is whether the atmosphere feels nurturing and lively enough for their child at this particularly formative stage.

Assessment at The Avenue is developmental, observational and strongly teacher led, with close attention to early language, number sense, phonics, social confidence and readiness for the next class. Parents should expect feedback that feels personal and age appropriate rather than driven by formal testing.