I'm Emma and together
with Lucy, I co-founded
the North Somerset
Nappy Alliance. I have a
3-year-old son called
Enzo.
As a new mum, I lived in
Bristol and there was
a lot of promotion
going on and plenty of
awareness about
washable nappies. I began working for a local nappy company there when I finished being a teacher, and then when I moved back to North Somerset the company were happy for me to continue working as a nappy agent in Weston.
The difference in awareness of washables was much greater than I had expected. As I began to talk to local mums at ante-natal talks, the one question I was continually asked was, why aren't the Council doing a voucher incentive scheme? So, I emailed the Council and asked to meet with someone to discuss washable nappies. Lucy, a member of the Waste Minimisation team, got in touch and we began a dialogue (and a friendship!) that has led us here.
An incentive scheme, would, in a way, be a cop-out. What we are doing is certainly much more hard work! But we believe firmly that what parents need is information, advice and ongoing support, and that those things are far more valuable than a cash hand-out. Money can be easily mis-spent in such a bewildering market, but we are helping parents spend their money wisely.
I'm Lucy and I work for North Somerset Council in the waste minimisation team.
My job entails promoting the reduce, reuse, recycle message to North Somerset residents, and washable nappies falls under both the reduce and reuse umbrellas.
Back in 2008 Emma got in touch with me about starting a nappy network, or Alliance, and since then we have been working hard to create a point of contact for parents and parents-to-be to find out information, and try, real nappies.
I didn't know a lot about washable nappies before Emma got in touch, and as I don't have children, I am still learning about all the different types and how they work. But it is a key part of my job to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill, and promoting real nappies and reducing the use of disposibles is important in achieving this.
