Toilet Training

Toilet training can be easy for some and more difficult for others. At Fledglings we want to ensure that every adult is supported through their child’s toilet training and that every child is supported between home and Fledglings for this important transition from nappy to toilet.

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At your child’s induction staff will discuss your child’s toileting needs, when you think your child may be close to leaving nappies behind, discuss this with your keyworker and they will ensure you and your child receive our specialised support and guidance.

We are here to support you and your child as you begin your toilet training journey. Toilet training for a child that attends Fledglings can present some challenges so this policy outlines the importance of discussing plans to toilet train your child with support from your key worker before you embark, to ensure your child is ready to achieve this next step. As an outside setting, it’s important to remember the impact waterproof clothing can have when it comes to changing clothes after a toileting accident and our policy prioritises your child’s wellbeing during this process. Unfortunately we do not have the staff or resources to change multiple children multiple times a day, especially in cold and wet weather. In the exceptional circumstance that your child has up to three accidents in one day, to minimise the distress to the child we will contact you to discuss either placing them in a nappy if they wish to remain at Fledglings for the rest of the day or arrange for you to collect them. Moving forward we can establish a plan that continues to support you and your child on your toileting journey and keep your child comfortable and confident. We know everyone’s toileting journey is different and we are here to fully support you from start to finish.

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When should we start?

All children are different, there’s no hard and fast rule for when they need to toilet train but doing it too early, when you might be ready but they aren’t, can make the whole process long and difficult and do more harm than good.

Like any other skill your child will learn, it will take time and practice. Pushing them before they are ready may lead to your child becoming distressed and anxious about going to the toilet and negatively impact their time at Fledgings, stopping them from learning and enjoying their time with us.

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All children are different, there’s no hard and fast rule for when they need to toilet train but doing it too early, when you might be ready but they aren’t, can make the whole process long and difficult and do more harm than good.

Like any other skill your child will learn, it will take time and practice. Pushing them before they are ready may lead to your child becoming distressed and anxious about going to the toilet and negatively impact their time at Fledglings ,stopping them from learning and enjoying their time with us.​

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How will I know when they're ready?

Signs that tell you that your child might be ready:

• they get to know when they are weeing and will often tell you when they are doing it

• they can tell you when they have had a poo or a wee

• they go for more than an hour between wetting their nappy

• they are starting to be able to remove and put back on their own clothing

• they fidget or go quiet when they need to go to the toilet

• they have the ability, whether verbal or nonverbal to communicate that they need the toilet

You need to see all of these signs to indicate you or child is ready, just one or two is not enough!

It’s also important to pick a time when there’s not lots of other things going on in your lives; a house move, new baby or starting at a new setting will no doubt make things stressful and confusing.

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What should I do next?

If you think your child is ready to stop wearing nappies, please consider the following:

• Children to feel fully settled and secure at Fledglings before beginning this journey so as not to affect their self-esteem or confidence and to ensure they feel comfortable enough with our staff to accept their support in their intimate care

• Talk with your child’s key worker before starting, to see if they also think your child is ready, staff are trained to look for signs your child is ready and your child will behave differently at preschool than they do at home, they need to be ready both at home and in setting

• Make sure they have loose layers under their water proofs, they need to be able to get trousers etc off easily

• BE PATIENT - some children take to it like a duck to water, others need more support

• BE POSITIVE - although it can be frustrating, when toilet training your child it’s really important that you don’t get cross or upset if they have an accident, this could lead to them having difficulty going to the toilet or becoming very anxious and negative about toilet training.

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It is important to remember toilet training at Fledglings is NOT THE SAME as at home and here’s some reasons why…

• staff are looking after many children at a time often with many children toilet training in the same session

• unfortunately staff cannot take every child to the toilet every half hour unless they are assigned a SEND support worker

• when in waterproofs it is impossible to tell if a child has wet themselves unless we physically check them which is why it is important your child can tell us if they have had an accident

• children are often very busy engaging and moving around the setting and don’t want to stop for the toilet even though they will be reminded

• children may not feel as comfortable to tell a member of staff that they need the toilet as they do their own parent

• at Fledglings children come dressed in many layers which can be hard or slow to get off

• they are in different surroundings with different toilets/potties

Fledglings support

Staff will work with you to support you and your child when you embark upon toilet training, this should be a two-way communication between home and Fledglings. It is important to remember that toilet training should not be introduced at Fledglings until the child is confidently using the potty or toilet at home with minimal accidents.

• staff will talk about toileting with children through chat and stories throughout their time with us, it is important to normalise using the toilet as early as possible

• please make sure you send your child in with at least three full changes of clothing and multiple pants, any wet clothes will be sent back in a wet-bag, however, if your child does a poo that can’t be tipped out (!) or the pants are beyond saving they will be put in the bin, thank you for your understanding

• please do not use pull ups or put pants over nappies, it doesn’t help your child, put pants on them so they can feel if they are wet it is part of the learning process

• please ensure you dress your child in loose clothing that is easy to get down at speed, e.g. jogging bottoms - not jeans, waterproof dungarees should be done up on the outside of top layers of clothing

• staff will encourage your child to go to the toilet regularly however, we are a very busy setting so they will tend to do this at regular optimal intervals e.g. when we stop for snack or group time, they cannot be expected to do it every half hour

• please remember that even if your child has been doing really well at home, they have many more distractions at preschool so may struggle to start with

• please be realistic, while at home, you have the opportunity to take your child to the toilet frequently, at Fledglings we do not work one to one with the children and are often helping to toilet train a number of children at once sometimes up to 10 in one session

• don’t feel pressurised into toilet training, there is no hurry however, it really helps to start to familiarise your child with toilets and potties as soon as possible, have a toilet in the house, get your child to sit on it or the loo, talk about what it’s for, do all this way before they stop using nappies

• please don’t be annoyed if they wet themselves, its all a learning process, your disappointment can have a really negative impact on your child’s wellbeing and progress another good reason not to start them until they are absolutely ready

• if the child persistently has accidents at Fledglings, and in our opinion, is not ready for toilet training at Fledglings, we may advise you that you need to delay toilet training for a little while until the child is more ready

More advice can be found on ERIC the bladder and bowel charity website

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 July 25

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