Childcare in Whitehaven
Whitehaven has 7 day nurseries, 11 school nursery classes and 1 childminder. Ofsted has inspected 7 of them and rated 6 Good or better. 12 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Across Cumberland there are 25 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 Cumberland, 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 112 school nursery classes across Cumberland, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
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 2026Closed Whitehaven Sports Centre Holiday Playscheme Out-of-school day care
What people ask about childcare in Whitehaven
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
Which nurseries in Whitehaven take funded hours?
12 of the 19 settings in Whitehaven 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 Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.
Which nurseries in Whitehaven take babies?
8 settings in Whitehaven 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 Whitehaven?
Cumberland has 25 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 Whitehaven
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.