- Nuuri has raised £275K in pre-seed funding to launch the UK’s first platform that allows parents to search and enrol in nurseries online, tackling long waitlists and outdated processes head-on.
- Described as ‘The Rightmove for nurseries’, the platform offers virtual tours, room capacities, cost calculators and real-time availability, replacing voicemails and paper forms with a smooth digital experience.
- A recent parent survey revealed that 79% were placed on waiting lists, 43% were waiting 9–12 months, and 63% rated the enrolment process as poor. Nuuri is purpose-built to tackle this nationwide pain point.
- With over 34,000 day nurseries across the UK, Nuuri is tackling a fragmented £6bn sector, in need of transformation, and is already making life easier for both parents and providers in the private nursery sector.
- Nuuri, a startup developing the UK’s first search and enrolment platform for parents looking for nurseries, has raised £275,000 in pre-seed funding. The oversubscribed investment was raised in 90 days, 4 weeks quicker than anticipated. The tech startup is a Tech Scaler member, a Scottish Government-funded accelerator programme.
The investment marks a major step forward in the company’s mission to simplify the search and enrolment process, allowing parents and caregivers to spend more quality time with their little ones. Nuuri will use the funding to accelerate product development, focusing on AI tooling that will replace outdated manual documents and communications channels. The funding will also be allocated to improve the parent journey through search and enrolment, nursery marketing and onboarding across the UK’s private nursery sector initially.
Hailed as ‘The Rightmove for nurseries’, Nuuri seamlessly allows parents to filter nurseries by postcode, preferred start date and age of child and includes features such as virtual nursery tours, room capacities, cost calculators, search filtering and an essential parent advice hub. Nuuri has everything parents need to make sure the process is as smooth and stress-free as possible. The advice hub answers all the common questions parents face when it comes to looking for a nursery. From how to apply for Government funding, to different types of nurseries, what to look for when searching for a nursery, how much they cost, and how to navigate lengthy waitlists.
Nuuri conducted a parent survey across the UK, which revealed that over 79% of parents were put on a waiting list for a nursery place, with over 43% stating the waiting list was between 9-12 months long. Over 63% also outlined that they had a poor search and enrolment experience prior to securing a nursery place, stating lack of transparency and digitalisation as the main contributing factors.
Nuuri isn’t just for parents. The platform continues to work closely with nurseries to help them tackle one of their biggest challenges- pre-enrolment admin overload. By providing a modern digital shop-front, streamlining enrollment and communication, Nuuri is freeing up time for nursery staff to do what they do best – nurture and educate little ones.
Spearheaded by Steven Clarke, the Founder of Nuuri and a busy working dad. Steven has experienced firsthand the problem of finding a nursery for his child. From struggling to get through to nurseries, lack of information online, cancelled viewings and huge waiting lists, finding a place for his little girl was much more difficult than he could have ever imagined.
Steven Clarke, Nuuri Founder and CEO, said: “In 2023, my wife and I experienced the complexities of finding a nursery for our newborn daughter. As first-time parents, we had no idea how hard and time-consuming looking for a nursery would be. I set out on a mission to tackle this problem head on and ensure the process is less stressful for future parents and caregivers.
“We’re the UK’s first platform to digitalise search and enrolment in one place, making life easier for both parents and nurseries. As a working parent, I fully understand the juggle. That’s why we’re here – to lighten the load and support parents at every step.
“We aim to make it as easy as possible for parents and nursery providers, so we have built a multi-purpose platform that makes it simple, transparent and reliable. I am excited to see our roadmap of enhanced features come to life over the next few months, fuelled by this external investment and backing.”
Nafeesah Rafiq, Owner of Bright Bees Nurseries in Leicester, said: “Nuuri is bringing the kind of digital experience our sector has waited far too long for. Their platform lets us showcase our nurseries online with a level of polish we could never manage alone, guiding parents smoothly from search to enrolment. By lifting the admin burden, Nuuri frees our team to spend more quality time nurturing the children in our care. We’re thrilled to work with Steven and his team and excited about the positive change they’re driving across early-years childcare.”
Edinburgh-based Nuuri launched in December 2024 and is now live across Scotland, England & Wales.
