Quick Info

📍 Location:
Saffron Walden Library, 2 King Street, Saffron Walden, Essex, CB10 1ES

🕒 Day & Time:
Multiple sessions weekly (see below)

👶 Age: Babies, toddlers & preschoolers (sessions split by age)

💷 Price: Free

🟣 Booking: No booking required — just drop in

🟡 Term-time only: Yes (follows school term calendar)

Regular Sessions

Story Time (1–2 years)
Tuesday — 9:30–10:00am

Story Time (2+ years)
Tuesday — 10:30–11:00am

(Occasional craft and holiday sessions also run during half terms and school holidays — worth checking their noticeboard or Facebook page.)

At a Glance

Best for: Babies’ first group experience & parents wanting an easy outing
Vibe: Calm, structured but relaxed
Space size: Medium children’s library area
Parking difficulty: Moderate (town centre)
Buggy access: Good (automatic doors & level entry)
Sells out? No — drop-in
Planning difficulty: Very easy

What It’s Like

Saffron Walden Library sessions are very gentle and beginner-friendly, which makes them especially good if you’re newly on maternity leave or still building confidence getting out of the house with a baby.

The children’s section has a soft seating area and open space where little ones can sit at the front while the librarian leads songs and stories. Sessions usually include:

• Simple songs and rhymes
• A short picture book story
• Repetition week-to-week (which toddlers actually love)
• Time to browse books afterwards

It’s structured enough to hold children’s attention, but relaxed enough that nobody minds if your baby crawls away halfway through.

After the session most parents stay to look at books, chat, or let toddlers explore the children’s area — which is honestly half the value of it.

Practical Bits (Important!)

The library is right in the town centre, so parking is the only real planning element.

Closest options:
• Waitrose car park (short walk)
• Swan Meadow car park (easiest with buggy)

There’s space for prams inside and staff are very used to buggies.

Toilets and baby changing are available.

Walden Weekly Tip 💡

If you’re nervous about your baby making noise — this is the place to start. Nobody expects silence and plenty of babies crawl, wiggle, babble or wander around.

Arrive 5–10 minutes early if you want a good spot near the front — toddlers especially engage more when they can see the book clearly.

Also: you can borrow board books for babies, which many parents don’t realise. Rotating library books every week is a surprisingly good boredom-buster at home.