Updated Early Years Toilet Training Guidance, and What Needs to Happen Next

We welcome the Department for Education’s recent update to its toilet training guidance for early years providers.

“Children should stop using nappies between 18 and 30 months.”  

The new guidance reflects advice presented by bladder & bowel charities, health professionals, and sustainability evidence presented to Parliament in November 2025 by researchers at UCL’s Plastic Waste Innovation Hub. It marks an important step towards more consistent, evidence‑based support for children, families and early years educators. 

Disposable fossil-based nappies are a major and often overlooked source of plastic waste. Around 3.6 billion single‑use nappies are sent to landfill or incineration in England every year, and rising toilet training ages in western countries mean children are spending longer in nappies than ever before.  

The UCL policy briefing to Parliament highlighted that reducing disposable nappy use by supporting earlier toilet learning delivers the greatest environmental, social and economic benefits, compared with recycling or use of alternative products alone. Evidence suggests that completing toilet training before 30 months is generally associated with better bladder and bowel health, earlier detection of continence issues, reduced pressure on schools and nurseries, and lower costs for families and public services. 

The updated Department for Education guidance recognises the vital role early years settings play. Most children attend nursery during the key developmental window for toilet learning, and recent behavioural research with UK parents shows that consistent support from childcare providers is one of the most strongly supported interventions. 

However, the policy brief was clear that system‑wide alignment is essential. NHS and Department of Health and Social Care guidance has not yet been updated leaving parents and practitioners navigating mixed messages. 

To make further progress, guidance from the Department for Education, Department of Health and Social Care, the NHS and Ofsted must be aligned, with clear, evidence‑based messaging that supports children to be fully out of nappies between 18 and 30 months, alongside practical, non‑judgemental support for families. Coordinated action across health, education and sustainability policy would deliver a rare win–win–win: better outcomes for children, reduced costs for families and services, and a substantial reduction in plastic waste. 

The evidence is clear. Alignment is now the missing piece.