Childcare in Burnley
Burnley has 19 day nurseries, 5 pre-schools, 11 school nursery classes, 13 childminders and 15 after-school clubs. Ofsted has inspected 33 of them and rated 31 Good or better, 4 of them Outstanding. 30 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Across Lancashire there are 38 places per 100 children under five, better supplied than England as a whole at 32.
Places per 100 under-fives is registered capacity at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across Lancashire, divided by the children aged 0 to 4 who live there at the 2021 Census. It compares areas; it is not a count of free places today. It also leaves out the 227 school nursery classes across Lancashire, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
63 settings, best rated first. Search by postcode to sort them by how far they really are.
What has changed here
Ofsted does not publish closures, so we work them out by comparing releases. Worth knowing if you are working from an old list.
- Jun 2026Opened Knight Hill Day Nursery Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Opened PALS-New Church St Mary's Primary School Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Opened Whitegate Nursery School Snug Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Closed Knight Hill Day Nursery Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Closed Little Acorns Padiham Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Include Me 2 Ridgewood Sessional day care
- Jun 2026Closed Pro Sport Coaching Ltd Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed Burnley Play Association Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Closed 7B Full day care
- Dec 2025Closed 7B Full day care
- Dec 2025Opened Learning Cubs - Burnley Out-of-school day care
- Dec 2025Opened Kip McGrath Burnley South Full day care
What people ask about childcare in Burnley
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
Which nurseries in Burnley take funded hours?
19 of the 63 settings in Burnley are recorded as taking the government funded hours. Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.
Are any nurseries in Burnley rated Outstanding?
Yes. 4 of the 33 settings Ofsted has inspected in Burnley hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in Burnley take babies?
46 settings in Burnley are registered to take children under two. Ofsted's register does not say whether a setting runs a baby room or has space in it, so ring before you plan around it.
Is it hard to get a nursery place in Burnley?
Lancashire has 38 registered childcare places for every 100 children under five, against 32 across England. That is registered capacity rather than free places, so it compares areas rather than telling you what is available this week.
Towns close to Burnley
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.