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Busy Bees gets creative to cut the number of nappies as parents delay toilet training
Freya Lucas
Aug 27, 2024
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Early childhood education and care (ECEC) provider Busy Bees in the United Kingdom has introduced a support program for parents and families in a bid to help children with learning to use the toilet.
Since implementing the program the provider has seen a significant reduction in the number of nappies used in its services as parents embrace the resources, activities and tips.Practitioners raised the need for such a programme after finding that children were being taught to use the toilet at later and later ages since the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We have seen that the pandemic and subsequent change in working patterns has led to more families leaving it later to train their child, and felt we had an important role to play in leading the charge to provide support and guidance for our families,” Deena Billings, European quality director and safeguarding lead at Busy Bees shared with Nursery World.
"Six months on, and we’re thrilled with the results across our centres, with almost half of parents saying they believe their child had come out of nappies earlier because of our support. Not only does this reduce the number of nappies our centres use by a quarter, but also those used by parents at home – benefitting their pockets and the planet."
More than 400 Busy Bees services throughout the UK and Ireland began implementing the program at the end of last year, also including refresher training for staff and tips and resources for parents to help recognise the signs and help children transition more quickly and successfully.
Since introducing the initiative, nappy waste across the network has dropped by 26 per cent when comparing figures between November 2023 – April 2024 with the same period the previous year.
A survey carried out by Busy Bees of 493 parents in June found that 79 per cent of those who have successfully and consistently had their child using the toilet since the scheme launched said they received valuable support from their child’s service or keyworker, and 45 per cent felt their child came out of nappies earlier as a result.
Parents said they found conversations with staff and advice on ways to spot readiness and talk to their children about toilet training most helpful. This was followed by the suggested activities with children about using the toilet.
For service leader Kelly Maskell the initiative has also boosted the confidence of staff, giving them the confidence to bring up the subject of toilet training with parents whose children are showing signs of readiness.
"As well as using the learning resources to plan activities in our toddler room, we were also encouraged to create a display in our reception area which I know prompted a lot of conversations with parents," she said.
"From there, we were able to help children develop the communication skills to support toilet training and share specific advice about readiness with our parents. Myself and the team were able to shed some light on some of the non-verbal cues that can sometimes cause confusion, including when toddlers start to take their nappies off."
Many parents feel apprehensive about when to initiate toilet learning, and the bulk of parents (over 80 per cent) believe toilet learning should happen in conjunction with their child’s early learning service.
Learn more about the initiative here. The Nursery World coverage of this story is available here.
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