Nappies are an essential part of raising any baby but do you know where they go after it’s been filled and disposed of? According to the Nappy Alliance over 400,000 tonnes of disposable nappies go to landfill every year and take over 500 years to decompose.
There is an alternative! Well a few actually, but I’d like to present the Leeds Cloth Nappy Library today. The Library is run by Patty who is passionate about reusable cloth nappies, wipes and liners for children and babies still in nappies.
I sat in on one of her lending and education sessions where she talked expectant Mum Amy, and others, through what nappies would be suitable for her baby and how to use them. The offering was very colourful and Patty is well equipped with everything you need to furnish a babies bottom from birth upwards. Amy commented:
“Our house is plastic free and it didn’t make sense to start sending nappies to landfill.”
The nappies all look very user friendly and work on a system of poppers or Velcro instead of folding and nappy pins which some readers might remember from using Terry Towel nappies. The colourful shells that hold the absorbent lining also look beautiful when pinned up on the washing line drying. My favourite is a little black and white one with mathematical formulae written on it.
Chantelle helps at the library and is accompanied by her daughter Phoebe who has been in cloth since she was 1 month old. Chantelle explained that she used cloth nappies when living in a small flat with no washing machine so there’s no barrier to doing cloth if you’re willing to dedicate time to it. Chantelle will never go back to using disposables and attributes her daughters lack of nappy rash to using them.
The nappies Patty offers can be borrowed for a lending donation of £10, this allows you to try a selection of nappies Patty has helped you select for your child for two weeks. If they don’t work for you, you can bring them back and try others or reach out to Patty who can help. The library meets in the Beeston Hill United Free Church on Tuesdays but make sure you book via their Facebook page as they don’t meet every week.
