Childcare in Sunderland
Sunderland has 29 day nurseries, 1 pre-school, 41 school nursery classes, 22 childminders and 1 after-school club. Ofsted has inspected 40 of them and rated 38 Good or better, 9 of them Outstanding. 54 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Of those that publish a price, a full day runs from £45 to £70, typically £68. Across Sunderland there are 19 places per 100 children under five, worse supplied than England as a whole at 32.
Places per 100 under-fives is registered capacity at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across Sunderland, 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 73 school nursery classes across Sunderland, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
94 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 Your Co-Op Little Pioneers Nursery and Pre-School Tavistock House Full day care
- Jun 2026Opened Saints in Light Nursery School Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Apple Blossom Day Nursery Full day care
- Jun 2026Closed Community Kids Club @ Hudson Road Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Community Kids Club CIC Out-of-school day care
- Jun 2026Closed Your Co-op Little Pioneers Nursery & Pre-School Tavistock House Full day care
- Dec 2025Closed Buttercups Day Nursery Full day care
- Dec 2025Closed St Marys Childcare Centre Full day care
- Dec 2025Opened Little Crickets Argyle House Full day care
- Dec 2025Opened Nurserytime Full day care
- Jun 2025Opened Kids Planet Ettrick Grove Full day care
- Jun 2025Closed Kids Planet Ettrick Grove Full day care
What people ask about childcare in Sunderland
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
How much does nursery cost in Sunderland?
Of the 6 full-day rates published by settings in Sunderland, the typical price is £68 a day, ranging from £45 to £70. These are prices the settings publish themselves, not an average of quotes.
Which nurseries in Sunderland take funded hours?
45 of the 94 settings in Sunderland 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 Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.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 Sunderland rated Outstanding?
Yes. 9 of the 40 settings Ofsted has inspected in Sunderland hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in Sunderland take babies?
51 settings in Sunderland 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 Sunderland?
Sunderland has 19 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 Sunderland
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.