host for wordpress sites

Hi,
I am presently hosted with Webhostingpad, but unfortunately as soon as cpanel gets activity, I get problems. Also they have downtime unrelated to my activity. On top of that their support is not worth the time involved and they have no understanding of wordpress.
Question:
1. Is/Are there web host/s, who have good uptime and understand wordpress issues ?
2. Is there any advantage being hosted by a hosting company that uses the cloud system (my sites need to be considerably faster in loading)?
Hopefully my questions are clear. Thanks.
montaya