Childcare in St. Albans
St. Albans has 34 day nurseries, 18 pre-schools, 26 school nursery classes, 42 childminders and 35 after-school clubs. Ofsted has inspected 73 of them and rated 70 Good or better, 21 of them Outstanding. 83 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Across Hertfordshire 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 Hertfordshire, 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 317 school nursery classes across Hertfordshire, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
156 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 Club Kidz Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened FizzBug @ Cottonmill Community & Cycle Centre Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened SNAP St Albans Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Watling View School Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed FizzBug @ St Saviour's Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Rising Stars Activities Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Markyate Headquarters - After School & Holiday Club Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Vaks Ltd At Marlborough Science Academy Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Rainbow House After School Club Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Edubox - Margaret Wix School Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed FizzBug Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed FizzBug Holiday Club @ Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre Sessional day care
What people ask about childcare in St. Albans
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
Which nurseries in St. Albans take funded hours?
35 of the 156 settings in St. Albans 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 Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.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 St. Albans rated Outstanding?
Yes. 21 of the 73 settings Ofsted has inspected in St. Albans hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in St. Albans take babies?
112 settings in St. Albans 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 St. Albans?
Hertfordshire 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 St. Albans
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.