If you need to borrow toys or books to while away the hours, let the kids go sport crazy or find someone who might help you understand your teenager, then take a look below for everything you need to know about family-friendly Harpenden.  You can view the exact location of these facilities on our map.

DURING COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS PLEASE DOUBLE-CHECK ALL OPENING TIMES AND FACILITIES AVAILABLE.

Harpenden Town Council is very active and only too willing to help you find your way around Harpenden. Just be aware that their Information Point opening times are Monday, Wednesday & Friday 10am - 2pm.  In recent years the council have renovated the play park at Batford Springs. For more information on the parks and play areas in Harpenden see our Things to do. They also organise a lot of great local events such as the Farmer's Market, the Teddy Bears Picnic and the Harpenden Carnival.  Keep an eye on our What's On page for details.  

Harpenden Town Council offer, on behalf of Hertfordshire Police, a Lost and Found service from the Town Hall in Leyton Road.

Harpenden Town Council, Town Hall, Leyton Road, Harpenden, Herts AL5 2LX (opposite Busy Bees, next to the entrance of Rothamsted Park) 
Tel: 01582 768278 Fax: 01582 760026 Email: [email protected]

Harpenden Police Station is located on Vaughan Road.  It is not open to the public and does not offer a front desk service, but it does have an outside telephone where you can make a free call directly to 101.

If you would like to speak to a local officer about local policing issues and crime prevention a Beat Surgery is held every Friday afternoon 3-5pm in the meeting room in the High Street Methodist Church.

The nearest local police station is in St Albans, but is only open by appointment.

Harpenden library on the High Street is all hi-tech which makes borrowing books incredibly easy. The very helpful staff are knowledgeable and friendly, and, did you know, that once you are a member of the library you can renew your books online? It has baby-change and disabled toilets and free public Wi-Fi.

Opening Times:

Monday    9am -6pm
Tuesday   9am - 1pm (Library Express*) 1pm - 6pm (Normal service)
Wednesday 9am - 1pm (Library Express*) 
Thursday 9am - 7pm
Friday    9am - 1pm (Library Express*) 1pm - 6pm (Normal service)
Saturday    9am - 5pm
Sunday    CLOSED

*Library Express is a reduced service where only the small front section of the library (not the children's section or the public computers) is open.  During this time you can borrow from the selection of books available at the front, return books and renew using the self-service.

BookTrust Storytime, with stories, rhymes and activities takes place on Tuesdays 2.15 – 2.45pm and is great for pre-schoolers. 

Baby Rhyme Time takes place on Thursday mornings at 10 - 10.30am and 11:30am - 12noon.  These sessions are popular so although they are free, places must be booked.

On the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of every month at 10 - 10.30am there's Storytime for Under 8s.

Full details of all services are available on the Library website.

Harpenden Library, 27 High Street, Harpenden, Herts AL5 2RU 
Tel: 0300 123 4049

You can find Places of Worship in Harpenden listed on a separate page.

Hertfordshire Family Centre Service is a good service to know about when you are pregnant, just had a baby or new to the area.  They offer a range of different support groups, activities and services for families and their child/children from pregnancy to age 19. You can access services or attend classes and groups at any of the centres across the county, but our local centres are Batford Family Centre and Southdown Family Centre.  You must register on their website to access the services. Please note that outside of the times of classes, groups and other timetabled services these centres are not staffed.

Batford Family Centre, Batford Early Years Centre, Holcroft Road, Harpenden, Herts AL5 5BQ 
Southdown Family Centre, Grove Clinic, Dark Lane, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 1QB
Tel: 0300 1237572 

Harpenden's Public Toilets and Baby Change Facilities are located next to Pizza Express. They also have very exciting (according to the children) all-in-one hand washing and drying machines.

The Library has a baby-change and disabled toilet, Sainsbury's have public facilities just inside the store, as does the Co-Op on Southdown Road.  

If you are in Rothamsted Park you can use the toilets located inside the Sports Centre.

Post Offices are located in Kinsbourne Green (393 Luton Road), in the Co-Op in Southdown (which rarely has queues but doesn't offer a full range of services) and the main branch in WH Smith on the High Street where, amongst other things, passports can be checked.

Should you need one you can find a Launderette located in Southdown.

With frequent trains to London it is no wonder Harpenden Station is so busy. However, if you are unfamiliar with the station it is good to know what to expect. The lifts to the platforms make life easier for buggies and wheelchairs. Also, if you are parking in the station car park with the entrance opposite Carlton Road be aware that the ticket office is on the other side of the station.  There are automatic ticket machines on both sides of the station. The three pick-up and drop off car spaces are on the ticket office side and the rest of that area is used by taxis. 

Harpenden Station, Station Road, Harpenden, Herts AL5 4ST

Young people aged 11-18 who live in Hertfordshire and are in full-time education can get half-price bus travel with a SaverCard.  There is a one-off fee of £15 (correct as of March 2019).

Harpenden also has its own community bus Hail & Ride service called the Harpenden Hopper. It operates Tuesday - Thursday from 9.25am  to 4.50pm on 4 routes covering the town centre, Southdown, Eastmoor Park, Wood End, Roundwood and Kinsbourne Green.  Anyone can use this hail & ride service.  Cost is £2 for an adult single journey and £1 for a child under 16.  The timetable is available on the website.

Harpenden Leisure Centre has classes from tots to teens that are very affordable and with a drop-in crèche you may even find time for a little exercise yourself. From a young age children can begin tennis, football, gymnastics, trampolining, badminton and swimming. For older children there are outdoor tennis courts, a MUGA, badminton and group training as well as a continuation to a higher level of the tots' sports. For more information see our list of Activity Classes.

There is also 25m swimming pool and learner pool, which is delightfully warm. There are often classes being held in the both pools, so knowing the timetables are crucial! And so is knowing there is a health suite hiding just beyond the deep end of the main pool where you can sink into a jacuzzi or steam in the sauna.

MGT Tip: If you are using the leisure centre make sure you pick up a valid parking ticket from the reception as all parking in Harpenden is regularly patrolled.

Harpenden Leisure Centre, Rothamsted Park, Harpenden, Herts AL5 2HU 
Tel: 01582 767722 Fax: 01582 767987 Email: [email protected]

For all your recycling needs you can find Harpenden's Recycling Centre at Dark Lane.  Visit the Herts County Council website to see a full list of all the items you can recycle here. Opening times are 10am - 6pm Saturday to Wednesday, closed Thursday & Friday.  If you can, it is best to avoid peak times on weekends and bank holidays as queues can be long and to avoid congestion on the surrounding roads you will be turned away if the queues are too long.  However there is a live camera and a queue-time estimator on the website.

For details of your kerbside recycling and waste collections see the St Albans District Council website.

Harpenden Recycling Centre, Dark Lane, Harpenden, AL5 1QB

If you have reached the door-slamming and life being "so unfair" stage then you will probably be ready for Youth Connexions. This service, for 13 -19 year olds (up to 25 years for young people with disabilities), parents and carers allows you to access advice, information and support in all areas of teenage life from education and career paths to guidance for those with anxieties about life's challenges. 

Part of Hertfordshire Youth Connexions, the Harpenden Young People's Centre is a wonderful facility located above Harpenden Library equipped with a dance studio, a computer area and a state-of-the-art training kitchen where teens can hang out with friends and take part in a variety of activities.  Opening hours are Friday 6.30 - 8.30pm.  It's free and young people aged 13-17 (or 24 with a disability or special needs) can just drop-in. Entry is by buzzer and it is fully wheelchair accessible with disabled toilet facilities.

Harpenden Young People's Centre, Above Harpenden Library, 27 High Street, Harpenden, Herts AL5 2RU
Email: [email protected]

The Harpenden Trust's mission statement reads, "Funded by Harpenden people. Run by Harpenden people. To benefit Harpenden people in need". Their help, financial or otherwise, is carried out confidentially and extends to families and to Youth & Schools. If you find yourself, for example, struggling to afford school uniform or course trips, this is where to turn.  They also are in a position to help community organisations and groups which enhance the lives of Harpenden people.

The Harpenden Trust, 90 Southdown Road, Harpenden, Herts AL5 1PS  
Tel: 01582 460457 Email: [email protected]

Citizens Advice give free, independent, impartial and confidential advice and information on a range of subjects including: Benefits, housing and council tax benefits, Consumer Rights and issues, Debt and money advice, Family and relationships, Housing, Legal issues and Employment.  They also hold foodbank vouchers. St ALbans District Citizens Advice are based at the Civic Centre, St Peter's Street, St Albans but they hold an Outreach Service at The Salvation Army Hall on Leyton Green on Mondays and Thursdays, 10m - 1pm.  You can also call the advice line on 03444 111 444 or 01727 811118. 

St Albans District Foodbank works with frontline care agencies based in St Albans, Harpenden, Wheathampstead and the surrounding areas.  These frontline agencies are registered foodbank voucher distributors, holding the vouchers and giving them directly to an individual or family in crisis who then collects the food parcel from one of the distribution centres. If you find yourself falling on hard times contact the St Albans District Food Bank to find out how to get help.  You can contact them by phoning 01727 613019 or emailing [email protected].