St Paul's Walden Nursery
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Hitchin for children from birth to 8+, open 09:00 to 15:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2024. Open since 2004, with 26 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Hertfordshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Hertfordshire from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
SG4 8HXWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 21 October 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff create a safe and welcoming environment for children. They know that children need to feel happy and secure to thrive. Children's emotional well-being is prioritised. Staff offer families home visits before they join the nursery and tailored settling-in sessions. This helps children to build secure attachments with them, and children swiftly settle. They show that they feel at ease, are confident and keen to learn. Staff plan engaging learning experiences that support children's interests.
This child-centred approach helps all children to make good progress in their learning. For example, the rich range of creative materials and staff's positive interactions motivate children to draw pictures of bats and pumpkins. Children add intricate details, such as stars, and are keen to share their achievements with the inspector and staff.
Staff are positive role models. They consistently use good manners when speaking with each other and the children. This motivates children to do the same. Children are active problem solvers. Through trial and error, they discover that they need to compress the sand in their bucket before flipping it over to help the sand hold a shape. Children benefit from outings in the community, which help them to learn about the wider world. Staff intuitively build on children's experiences, such as recent visits to see a doctor through their imaginative play. Children proudly share their achievements from home with their friends, such as demonstrating how to assemble the parts of a trumpet and produce a sound. This helps to enhance children's self-esteem.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- extend the information gathered from parents when children first start to inform children's unique next steps in learning from the outset and provide ideas to aid learning at home n develop effective strategies to help children to understand the behavioural expectations in place.
- 21 October 2024Good
- 10 December 2018Good
- 8 October 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for St Paul's Walden Nursery
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.