Childcare in Leicester
Leicester has 81 day nurseries, 23 pre-schools, 72 school nursery classes, 21 childminders and 26 after-school clubs. Ofsted has inspected 106 of them and rated 93 Good or better, 8 of them Outstanding. 118 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Of those that publish a price, a full day runs from £29 to £90, typically £58. Across Leicester there are 23 places per 100 children under five, worse supplied than England as a whole at 32.
Places per 100 under-fives is registered capacity at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across Leicester, 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 74 school nursery classes across Leicester, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
95 settings match. 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 Clubszone CZ Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened Chatterbox Pre-School Knighton Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Opened Clubszone CZ Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened Linwood Day Nursery Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Spark Academy Belgrave Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Angels And Monsters Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Closed Premier Education at St Josephs Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Premier Education at Taylor Road Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Premier Education at Holy Cross Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Premier Education at Inglehurst Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Premier Education at Wyvern Primary school Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed High Hopes Day Nursery ( Glenfield ) Full day care
What people ask about childcare in Leicester
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
How much does nursery cost in Leicester?
Of the 18 full-day rates published by settings in Leicester, the typical price is £58 a day, ranging from £29 to £90. These are prices the settings publish themselves, not an average of quotes.
Which nurseries in Leicester take funded hours?
95 of the 224 settings in Leicester 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 Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.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 Leicester rated Outstanding?
Yes. 8 of the 106 settings Ofsted has inspected in Leicester hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in Leicester take babies?
127 settings in Leicester 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 Leicester?
Leicester has 23 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 Leicester
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.