Whitwell is a small village located on the south of the Isle of Wight, approximately 5 kilometres north-west of Ventnor, the village's nearest town. At the 2011 Census the appropriate civil parish was Niton and Whitwell. In addition to this, it is about five minutes away from its neighbouring small villages of Godshill and Niton, the latter of which, Whitwell forms a civil parish. According to 2001 census data, the total population of the village was 578. There is a variety of stone and thatched housing, as well as some more modern housing, the most recent of which was completed in 2006.