Reusable Nappy Incentive Schemes
Councils and local government are finally waking up to the fact that we cannot keep churning through the amount of single-use disposable nappies at the rate we are. While most eco-minded individuals are focussed on their Keepcup, ditching plastic straws and using reusable shopping bags, disposable nappies are going unnoticed as one of the most significant contributors to plastic pollution globally.
One baby will have around 5,000 nappy changes by the time they are potty trained. The Guardian reports that an estimated 167bn disposable nappies are produced every year, using 248.5m barrels of crude oil. Because of the unsustainable materials used to manufacture disposable nappies, and the fact that each nappy is contaminated with human waste, disposable nappies are incredibly hard to recycle. Most of them end up in landfills, where they can take upwards of 300 years to decompose! Globally, more than 300,000 disposable nappies a minute are sent to landfills, incinerated or in the environment, including the ocean…
Disposable nappies cost the UK’s local authorities over £60 million per annum for disposable; whether this is to incineration plants or landfills! So, this is why many councils around the united kingdom and Ireland have started promoting ‘real’ nappies via ‘real nappy council incentive schemes'.
Can I get free reusable nappies from my council?
Unfortunately, what you get from the council will depend on where you live; some councils do a free nappy sample, some do a discounted starter kit, or simply just vouchers for you to redeem. But the best thing is that most reusable nappy shops are online, so you’ll likely get reusable nappies delivered straight to your door!
Check our extensive list for the most up to date reusable nappy incentive schemes;
Reusable Nappy Incentive Schemes
Bedfordshire: £25 cash back on any reusable nappy or reusable training pant purchase
Berkshire: £30 cash back voucher
Barking & Dagenham, Havering and Redbridge - Free trial kit for all residents
Bournemouth: £30 voucher or cash back
Bradford: Free Trial kit via Real Nappy Project worth £45
Bracknell: £30 cashback
Broxbourne: 15% off at select retailers
Cumbria: £30 cash back
Derbyshire: £25 cash back when you spend £50
Devon: Free nappy trial
Dorset: £30 cash back when you spend £45 or more
Dudley: £30 when you spend £50 or more
Essex: £30 cash back
Gloucestershire: £30 voucher
Guernsey: £35 cash back per child
Huntingdon: discounts with selected retailers
Leicestershire: Free trial
Lincolnshire: Free trial
Luton - £40 cashback on real nappy purchases of £50 or more
North Somerset - Loan kits, advice and demos
Oxfordshire - Real Nappy loan scheme
Rutland - Real Nappy Trail Packs
Selby - £30 cash back
South Gloucestershire - Discounted Nappy Kits
Wakefield - Free Washable Nappy Trial Kit
Wealdon - Lend residents a reusable nappy kit
Wiltshire - Free one-months trial kit
Wokingham - Cash back Scheme
Real Nappies for London
The Real Nappies for London Campaign provide residents of certain London boroughs with vouchers up to £70 to put towards real nappy purchases.
Barnet - £70 voucher
Bexley - £50 voucher
Camden - £70 voucher
Enfield - £70 voucher
Haringey - £70 voucher
Hackney - £70 voucher
Islington - £70 voucher
Lambeth- £40 voucher
Waltham Forest - £70 voucher
Westminster City Council - £70 voucher
West London Waste lend residents a Nappy Starter Pack:
Southwark - offer a trial pack
Wales Reusable Nappy Incentive Schemes
Carlisle - £30 voucher for the purchase of real nappies;
Denbighshire - £75 voucher for the purchase of real nappies;
Flintshire - £75 voucher for the purchase of real nappies
Gwynedd - Free nappy trial pack or a £30 voucher for the purchase of real nappies
Pembrokeshire - £30 cashback when you spend over £50 or £60 cashback when you spend over £150 on real nappies
Torfaen - £30 voucher for the purchase of real nappies
Swansea - A whopping £100 cashback on your spend on reusable nappies
Powys - An incentive of up to £100 (minimum of £50) per family, towards the cost of reusable nappies
Scotland Reusable Nappy Incentive Schemes
Edinburgh - Free Real nappy starter kit through Changeworks
Inverclyde - Grants for up to £80 cashback when you purchase reusable nappies
North Ayrshire - Real nappy starter kit, contact 01294 310000 or email wasteawarenessteam@north-ayrshire.gov.uk
Northern Ireland Reusable Nappy Incentive Schemes
Belfast City Council - Free two week nappy trial and £30 cashback scheme on purchases of £50 of nappies
Derry City & Strabane - £30 cashback when you purchase reusable nappies
Lisburn & Castlereagh - £30 cashback when you purchase reusable nappies
Newry, Mourne and Down - £30 cashback when you purchase reusable nappies
