The programme was developed after Busy Bees’ practitioners found that children were being toilet trained later since the pandemic.
It was introduced at more than 400 nurseries throughout the UK and Ireland at the end of last year to help parents and children achieve successful toilet training earlier.
The scheme aims to support children to move out of nappies earlier and more quickly by giving practitioners and parents the skills, resources and confidence to recognise when a child is ready for the transition.
The strategy includes refresher training for nursery staff and tips and resources for parents to help recognise the signs and help children transition more quickly and successfully.
For children it involves activities including fun games, vocabulary-focused play, songs and role-play.
Busy Bees said that since it introduced its toilet training initiative, nappy waste across its nurseries 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 nappy trained their child since the scheme launched said they received valuable support from their child’s nursery or keyworker, and 45 per cent felt their child came out of nappies earlier as a result.
Parents said they found conversations with nursery practitioners 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.
Kelly Maskell, centre director at Busy Bees East Malling, said the initiative has given colleagues 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.’
According to Busy Bees’ research, more than half (54 per cent) of those who are yet to potty train their children feel apprehensive about it, and the vast majority (88 per cent) of parents think their nursery and keyworker should play an important role in helping to toilet train their child.
Suzanne Buchan, a parent whose daughter attends Busy Bees Stowmarket, said, ‘We had always openly spoken to our daughter about going to the toilet to lay the foundations for future potty training, but Busy Bees’ support of both us and her has been incredibly helpful.
‘We had a conversation with our daughter’s keyworker who confirmed our instinct that she was ready and, when we decided to tackle it, they were so encouraging – giving out potty training bags with information and pull-ups, having nappy training reward sticker charts, and even reading a toilet training book to Emelia’s group that she brought in from home. In our case, we were able to crack toilet training over the long Easter weekend and have only had the odd accident since then.’
Ofsted findings looking at the impact of Covid on children’s development in earl years settings have also highlighted that children are being toilet trained later and the likely impact of lockdown on children’s independence and confidence.
Deena Billings, European quality director and safeguarding lead at Busy Bees, said, ‘Toilet training is an important part of a toddler’s development and early success has a clear impact on a child’s confidence and independence, which are vital in preparing them for school.
‘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.
‘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.’
ERIC, the children's bladder and bowel charity, has also highlighted the impact of later toilet training on children starting school in September, and launched a campaign last month with tips for parents and early years practitioners.
More information
https://www.busybeeschildcare.co.uk/toilet-training
https://eric.org.uk/all-aboard-the-toilet-train-get-ready-for-school/
