Childcare in Harlow
Harlow has 24 day nurseries, 13 pre-schools, 18 school nursery classes, 18 childminders and 13 after-school clubs. Ofsted has inspected 49 of them and rated 45 Good or better, 9 of them Outstanding. 37 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Across Essex there are 36 places per 100 children under five, better supplied than England as a whole at 32.
Places per 100 under-fives is registered capacity at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across Essex, divided by the children aged 0 to 4 who live there at the 2021 Census. It compares areas; it is not a count of free places today. It also leaves out the 154 school nursery classes across Essex, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
86 settings, best rated first. Search by postcode to sort them by how far they really are.
What has changed here
Ofsted does not publish closures, so we work them out by comparing releases. Worth knowing if you are working from an old list.
- Jun 2026Opened Wrap around club Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened Rainbow Children's Corner Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened Blossoms Community Pre-School Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Blossoms Nursery Ltd Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Rainbow Children's Corner Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Longwood SSS Sports Camp Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Panda Childcare Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Time For Change Kids @Freshwaters Sessional day care
- Dec 2025Closed Roydon Acorns After School Club Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Let's Leap @ Saint Nicholas School Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Rosedan Breakfast and After-school club Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Rainbow Children's Corner Out-of-school day care
What people ask about childcare in Harlow
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
Which nurseries in Harlow take funded hours?
28 of the 86 settings in Harlow are recorded as taking the government funded hours. Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.
Are any nurseries in Harlow rated Outstanding?
Yes. 9 of the 49 settings Ofsted has inspected in Harlow hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in Harlow take babies?
66 settings in Harlow are registered to take children under two. Ofsted's register does not say whether a setting runs a baby room or has space in it, so ring before you plan around it.
Is it hard to get a nursery place in Harlow?
Essex has 36 registered childcare places for every 100 children under five, against 32 across England. That is registered capacity rather than free places, so it compares areas rather than telling you what is available this week.
Towns close to Harlow
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.