San Mateo · Licensed center
Bright Horizons at San Mateo
- Medium center, licensed for 72 children.
- Run by a for-profit business, which holds the license.
- Shortlist has found no website for it yet.
What the state has found
The state cited rules at 1 of its 5 licensing inspections under this license since January 2023.
Of the 98 Bay Area centers with 5 licensing inspections, 40% had rules cited at 1 of them, as this center did. 20% had none cited.
Licensing inspections
Jun 9, 20261 citation
“(b) The person who brings the child to, and removes the child from, the center shall sign the child in/out. This requirement is not met as evidenced by: Based on record review, the licensee did not comply with the section cited above in 5 out of 57 children present today, which poses a potential health, safety or personal rights risk to persons in care.”
CCR 101229.1(b)
Read every record and the state’s reports
State record — California CDSS Community Care Licensing
- Last visit
- August 20, 2026
- On file
- 5 visits since January 2023 — 4 cited nothing · 4 complaint investigations
- Most serious
- Type B —
(b) The person who brings the child to, and removes the child from, the center shall sign the child in/out. This requirement is not met as evidenced by: Based on record review, the licensee did not comply with the section cited above in 5 out of 57 children present today, which poses a potential health, safety or personal rights risk to persons in care.
· June 9, 2026
California CDSS publishes the full investigation narrative for a complaint, including its disposition, and classifies a citation Type A — an immediate risk to a child — or Type B.
Jun 2026 Complaint Unsubstantiated
Complaint · June 26, 2026
Unsubstantiated
ALLEGATION(S): -Staff are not ensuring adequate staffing to operate within ratio -Staff are not ensuring adequate staffing to meet the toileting needs of children in care. INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On August 20, 2026, at approximately 12:15PM, Licensing Program Analysts (LPAs) T. and Alvarado conducted an unannounced complaint investigation visit at the facility. LPAs met with Director L.M. and explained the purpose of the visit. Present during the visit were 8 staff and 54 preschool age children. During the course of the investigation, site observations, interviews, and record reviews were conducted. During site visits, LPAs observed the facility to be operating within ratio requirements. Based on record review, qualifications of teachers employed at the facility were verified. Sign-in sheets and teacher schedules were reviewed. There is no direct evidence to support or deny the above allegations. Based on relevant information reviewed, although the allegations may have happened or are valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is unsubstantiated at this time. A notice of site visit was provided and must remain posted for 30 days. Exit interview was conducted and report was reviewed with Director, L.M. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion:
Jun 2026 Licensing visit 1 finding
Licensing visit · June 9, 2026
CCR 101229.1(b) · Type B
(b) The person who brings the child to, and removes the child from, the center shall sign the child in/out. This requirement is not met as evidenced by: Based on record review, the licensee did not comply with the section cited above in 5 out of 57 children present today, which poses a potential health, safety or personal rights risk to persons in care.
May 2026 Complaint Unsubstantiated
Complaint · May 5, 2026
Unsubstantiated
ALLEGATION(S): Staff left daycare child in soiled diaper for a period of time. INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On June 9, 2026, at approximately 9:10AM, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) J.T. conducted an unannounced complaint investigation visit at the facility. LPA met with Director L.M. and explained the purpose of the visit. During the course of the investigation, LPA conducted site observations, record review, and interviews with relevant parties. LPA did not observe children to be left in soiled diapers. LPA observed staff taking children to the bathroom for toileting needs. Based on interviews, classes have a routine where they are taken to the bathroom on a regular basis. There is no direct evidence to support or deny the above allegation. Based on relevant information reviewed, although the allegations may have happened or are valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is unsubstantiated at this time. A notice of site visit was provided and must remain posted for 30 days. Exit interview was conducted and report was reviewed with Director, L.M. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion:
Apr 2026 Complaint Unsubstantiated
Complaint · April 25, 2026
Unsubstantiated
ALLEGATION(S): -Facility is operating out of ratio INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On June 9, 2026, at approximately 9:10AM, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) J.T. conducted an unannounced complaint investigation visit at the facility. LPA met with Director L.M. and explained the purpose of the visit. During the course of the investigation, LPA conducted site observations, record review, and interviews with relevant parties. LPA did not observe the facility to be operating out of ratio. Based on record review, LPA observed that teachers stationed in each classroom have units and are qualified as teachers. Interviews indicated that there are methods of communication (walkie talkies/telephones) that can be used by teachers to request assistance to meet ratios. There is no direct evidence to support or deny the above allegation. ***Continued on Page Two*** Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion:
Shortlist replaces people’s names in the state’s text with initials. This is done by rule, not by hand, so it can miss a name or shorten a word that isn’t one. The state’s report, linked on each row, has the original.
Openings, child care subsidies, cost, hours and late pickup, teaching approach, ratios and staff, a typical day, and sick and biting policies aren’t on this page.
Details
- Address
- 1700 Alameda De Las Pulgas
- License
- 414004968, active
- Chain
- Bright Horizons
- Owner
- Public shareholders (NYSE: BFAM)
The state licenses this address more than once, to the same licensee.
The infant-center license is published separately, with its own license and its own inspection record:
Bright Horizons at San MateoRun Bright Horizons at San Mateo? Correct or add anything here, free.
Add what is missingSources and dates
Where every fact on this page came from, and when Shortlist last checked it against that source. Anything Shortlist could not source is named here rather than left blank.
State record
The state’s licensing transparency data reports 6 complaint-related visit(s) to this facility, while 3 complaint investigation report(s) are published on the transparency portal. State complaint counts: substantiated=0, inconclusive=0, unsubstantiated=4, unfounded=CONFIDENTIAL, Type A citations=0, Type B citations=0. The state publishes no further detail for the difference.
From California CDSS Community Care Licensing’s published reports, last checked October 10, 2026.
Details
- Phone, Address, License — Checked July 2026 ccld.dss.ca.gov
- Who runs it — Checked October 2026 ccld.dss.ca.gov
- Chain — Checked October 2026 brighthorizons.com
- Owner — Checked October 2026 sec.gov/…/bfam-20251231.htm
Bright Horizons is a public company. Its annual report to the SEC for 2025 (Form 10-K, filed February 2026) lists its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BFAM. sec.gov
Medium means the middle half of Bay Area’s 439 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 31 to 75 children. Small is 8 to 30; large is 76 to 312.