Nappies

Why choose washable nappies?

Choosing washable nappies diverts waste from landfill and helps reduce the amount of rubbish produced each year. Disposable nappies are twice as damaging to the environment as washable nappies.

One million tonnes of nappies are thrown away every year - that’s 8 million nappies every day. Each child uses a total of 5,850 nappies in their lifetime - that weighs the same as an average family car! One baby fills up 40 black sacks of rubbish a year.

In Dorset we estimate that 7,500 tonnes of disposable nappies are sent to landfill every year. This costs the Council Tax payer approximately £440,000 every year!

Did you know?

• Disposables can take up to 500 years to decompose.
• Disposable nappies make up around 4% of all household waste.
• Each baby requires 4,500 nappy changes from birth to potty training.
• Four and a half trees are destroyed to keep one baby in disposable nappies for 30 months.
• In the UK alone we discard 63 million disposables each week.

Reusable nappies save you money

One pack of disposable nappies per week for two and a half years can cost over £1,000 per child. Even with washing costs, by using reusable nappies it can save you up to £600 and they can be reused for subsequent children for further savings.

Speeds Toilet Training

It is thought that babies in cotton nappies tend to toilet train around six months earlier than those in disposables. It is thought that the link between bladder release and wetness develops sooner because the nappy does not contain super-absorbent chemicals which keep the baby artificially dry.

Hygiene

Washable nappies are used with a degradable paper liner to catch the solids. These can be flushed down the toilet and treated through the sewage system. Nappies can then be pre-soaked or washed.

Padding

As children learn to walk they tend to fall over. Washable nappies tend to be more bulky than disposables and provide extra padding for the base of the spine.

Where can I start?

If you do not know where to start or have some unanswered questions the contacts below maybe able to help: