Sustainable Parenting: How Not Costing the Planet Needn't Cost the Earth

 ‘Have you got everything ready for the baby?’​

It’s one of those questions that everyone asks expectant parents towards the end of pregnancy. And there seems to be an almost blanket acceptance that not only do babies need a lot of stuff, it’s also going to be really expensive! Then there’s all this pressure to make sure it’s all environmentally friendly too. It’s important to look after the planet, which obviously means the cost is going up even more, because handmade wooden toys and custom-made cots built from reclaimed timber and ethically sourced organic cotton baby grows don’t come cheap...!

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 But what if I told you there are awesome ways to do all this in a more sustainable way, reduce waste, respect our planet and make it more cost effective? Well, that’s exactly what I’m going to do, because that’s what this blog is all about. Now I’m not knocking all those lovely things I just mentioned, however, as beautiful as they may be, and environmentally friendly as they might claim to be it’s still extra ‘stuff’ into the waste system. Being more eco-friendly is all about diversion away from the waste system, and I’m going to talk you through how you can use the waste hierarchy (a bit like Maslow’s Heirarch of Needs but all to do with avoiding throwing things away) to make more planet friendly choices about the things you choose for your new arrival. 

The waste hierarchy is something I learned all about from Jen Gale’s inspiring Facebook page. For those of you who have never heard of her, I would seriously encourage you to visit her page; Sustainable-ish. It’s all about making small, practical changes that make a big difference. Anyway, it goes way beyond the 3 R’s: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, that we’re all familiar with, and shows how much further down the list recycling is–it may be the green alternative to landfill but it’s still the waste cycle and there a lots of options to look at first.

In this version there are 7 R’s: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Re-home, Repair, Recycle, Rot. So how does that translate into buying baby stuff? Let’s focus on trying to keep from using those last 2 Rs if at all possible. We’ll start at the bottom of the triangle and work up. 

​Refuse- Don’t buy stuff! Yep, it really is as simple as that, have a look down the list of things you think you need for your newborn and have a good hard think about how much of it you actually need. If you don’t need it within the first few months, you don’t need to right now. So, the highchair and the baby walker and anything else geared towards older babies and toddlers, leave it off for now. Wait and see if you actually need it, your baby might decide they prefer to cruise around the furniture and slide a chair around the house as they learn to balance so the baby walker might not be needed after all. This will help you Reduce what you buy and use too.

What if they have another baby though? Well, then you send them back to them for the next baby! Reuse can go on for a really long time! Babies grow so quickly that baby clothes are almost never worn out as they are in them for such a  short period of time. Newborn cloth nappy packs can also be a hefty investment for short term use, and what happens to those “reusable” nappies once your baby’s bottom is a bit bigger? While a set of reusable nappies is a great thing to invest in to reduce waste from disposable nappies, the one size fits all types don’t tend to work ever so well for tiny babies, so rent a newborn set from your local nappy library or The Nappy Lady online for the first month, and if cloth nappying is for you then buying a one sized set for after they grow out of the newborn size means only investing in one set. These can also be bought preloved. 

If you fancy giving babywearing a go then the best way to work out what carrier will actually work for you and your baby is to hire one. This helps you avoid buyer’s regret. You may have a local sling library where you can hire carriers, and they may do a Free Stretchy Wrap Hire Scheme like the one offered by CalmFamily through It’s A Sling Thing, and they can give you loads of advice about options for carrying your baby from tiny prem to chunky toddler, and you can be sure you have found the right one before you commit to buying anything.

​Another great alternative to buying, is borrowing. It’s worth asking friends and family if they have things they wouldn’t mind lending you. Items such as Moses baskets and baby blankets often get kept for sentimental reasons, or for second children, but might be gathering dust in the meantime.

When reducing what we buy, clothes are a big one. Those cute little outfits are so tempting! Every time I had a baby, I was offered second-hand baby clothes, something which I happily accepted. The thing I found most interesting about this though, was that every single time there were items that still had tags on! Grown out of, before they were even worn. Babies grow so fast that you don’t need nearly as many clothes as you think! A dozen or so baby grows and vests really is plenty. Cut down on the amounts of bibs and muslins in the same way: half a dozen of each is a great starting point and if you find you need more, buy more as you go.

​Choose reusable items, rather than a packet or two of nappies every week and copious amounts of baby wipes, cloth nappies and wipes can be a great alternative. It can take a bit of getting used to and there’s a bit more work involved in doing the laundry, so if you don’t fancy going all in straightaway, why not start with just a few and just use cloth at home and disposables out and about, or maybe just the wipes to start with? Reusable breast pads are awesome too, they are so much comfier than the plastic version and save money too. Whether you’re breastfeeding and using them for months or even years or bottle-feeding and just using them till your milk dries up they are really worth investing a few pounds in.

​Reuse–Use it again or Re-purpose it. Or to be honest, it could just be USE IT! Literally just use the things you already have. A great example here is, instead of buying a plastic baby bath, wash your baby in a bath or in the sink. Instead of buying baby towels, use towels, they’re doing the same job! You don’t need a specific piece of equipment to wash and dry your baby’s skin. If this isn’t your first baby, it’s likely you still have lots of baby items that can be used again. Hand-me-downs are brilliant. Baby clothes and equipment can often be used and reused many times and if they’re starting to look a little tired, you can give them a new lease of life. A Dylon machine Dye will refresh A LOT of tiny baby grows and vest for around £7 and sanding down wooden furniture and restaining or painting can make it look like new for a few pounds and a bit of elbow grease! Get creative, OK, so this isn’t going to be for everyone, but it really works for some. Got a bed sheet with a hole in it? Cut it down, hem it and use it for the cot. Old cotton-jersey t-shirts make great reusable wet-wipes, cut them into small squares, pop them in a box and wet as needed. Fleece jumpers that have been outgrown make amazing reusable nappy liners, cut to the size of the nappy and it will help wick away the moisture from baby’s skin. The limit here is your imagination!

​Re-home–Buy it Pre-loved. Pre-loved, second hand, hand me down, whatever you want to call it, if you need to buy, buy used. There’s not all the packaging so you’re instantly cutting down on the waste and you’re keeping the item itself from going into the waste system. Plus it’s going to help an individual or charity make a little bit of money. Go shopping in charity shops, car boots and nearly new sales: all great places to find a bargain. Baby clothes, bedding, blankets, toys, and furniture can all be found very cheaply and often in really good condition. Going to look in person means you get to inspect the items closely and decide whether you really like it. And it’s absolutely fine to be picky, just because you’re choosing used; doesn’t mean you have to choose the first thing you find, the ‘treasure hunting’ aspect is one of the things I find most fun about second hand shopping! Shop online, if you’re looking for something specific, it may be less time consuming to do it online than trawling the shops. Ebay, Facebook marketplace, Gumtree, Freecycle and Facebook selling groups are really useful for this. Larger furniture items, slings and babycarriers, breast pumps, bottles and sterilisers are a few things that you might find it easier to do a more targeted search for. The ability to do it in your PJ’s from the sofa can also be really handy if you’re not feeling up to heading out. 

​Repair–Have a go at fixing it! As your baby grows, you may well find that things break or wear out, it’s just a part of life. You don’t have to be an expert to do some minor repairs and if the alternative is throwing it away anyway it’s got to be worth a go right?! This can be particularly useful with clothing, now newborns don’t tend to cause too much wear and tear, but crawling babies and stumbling toddlers take the knees out of their clothing on a regular basis in my experience! Whether they’re just looking worn or it’s a full blown hole, have a go at adding a patch or two. Even learning to sew a button back on can make a whole world of difference sometimes! And it doesn’t even need to be that complex, lost a screw from the cot? Buy a new screw rather than a new cot! Can’t find the little toys that attach to the baby gym? Improvise and find others that could clip or tie on. 

​And when you are done with baby items, what then? Well then is a great time to rehome them again, whether through selling as preloved, through giving to family or friends, or by donating to charity shops or baby basics schemes that help to support families on low incomes to provide what they need for their baby. If you and your children are done with them, but they still have life left in them send them on their way to be used again!

​Phew, that was a bit of a whistle stop tour... But there you have it, all the things you need, nothing you don’t need, eco-friendly and cost effective. Remember you don’t need to do all of these things, just one or two will make a massive impact. It means that a few more things, be that packaging from new items that you didn’t buy, clothes you didn’t throw away, nappies that you washed instead or furniture that didn’t end up at the tip, have avoided being sent to recycle or rot... Happy sustainable parenting!

Jeni Atkinson- CalmFamily Derby and Nottingham 

Jeni is a wonderful, compassionate and inspiring woman: "Just because our parenting is gentle doesn’t mean it doesn’t make a difference, the way we raise our children will impact how they feel about themselves & the choices they make as they grow up. I want to see things change in their lifetime, I want to fight back against the childist views of our patriarchal society, I want to see a world where children are allowed their own autonomy, that lets them learn for themselves & make their own mistakes. A society where diversity in all its forms is celebrated, where neurodiversity, mental health, sex & sexuality, gender, politics & all these subjects that are shied away from are talked about openly. A society where parents are inspired & supported to  make the choices that work from them & their families. Oh & save the planet at the same time!" ​

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