Home from Home Day Nursery is a day care facility and early educational pre-school setting for up to 55 children aged between 3 months and 5 years and is situated close to the centre of St.Albans, in a private set back area within its own car park facility.

The setting opens from 7.30am to 6.15pm all year round except for weekends and public holidays and is closed between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day. 

The setting was founded by Linda Collins in 1994. Linda, now retired from her Director role, consults as the settings EYT. Anne Carter, Company Director since 2016, directs and manages the nursery with Katie Ledwith (General Manager), and a team of highly skilled professionals. The setting is based around one large purpose built house and is surrounded by two outdoor areas. Children are drawn mainly from the city of St.Albans, but some come from smaller surrounding towns. Most parents/carers are employed in the professions, but the setting population includes a wide socioeconomic mix.

We aim to develop the full potential of each child. We are proud of our academic record, are renowned for drama social interactions and our reputation for a friendly and homely environment.

Under the name ‘Home from Home’, we achieved an ‘Outstanding’ rating across all areas of care and early education in three consecutive inspections. Most recently, in January 2025, under our new name, ‘Home from Home Day Nursery Academy’, we once again achieved an ‘Outstanding’ rating, making this our fourth consecutive Outstanding grading.

“The setting is very aware of the individual needs of all children, they recognise that children learn in different ways, activities and routines are adapted to ensure children feel valued and can take responsibility for their own play and actions. Practitioners work with parents/carers to meet young children’s home routines; babies sleep when they need to, the setting routine is adapted to meet their needs” – Ofsted 

"Children attending this family run, enjoyable and exciting day nursery receive the very best start to their education. Staff here offer a highly inclusive experience for each child. Children are confident and resilient. They learn techniques that help them to understand and regulate their emotions in different situations, for example through yoga and mindfulness techniques using petals." -Ofsted