Frequently asked questions
Sleep difficulties in primary aged children are very common.
However, a good night’s sleep will help your child to be healthy and happy. So it’s really important to support them to get a good night’s sleep. Add links to sleep websites on resources list.
It’s common for younger children to like to use their nappy. After all, it’s been what they’ve been used to since birth.
However, some children find it difficult to get out of this routine and will only poo in their nappy.
Holding on to poo can cause constipation, so it’s better for your child to poo in a nappy than not at all, but there are some thing you can do to help them feel confident pooing in the toilet. Remember, consistency and patience are very important.
Encourage nappy changing in the toilet area.
Teach your child to wipe their bottom at this stage and to empty the poo into the toilet, flush away and wash their hands.
Progress to sitting your child on the toilet still in their nappy with the lid down and their feet on a step. After a while, get them to sit on the toilet with the lid up – using a training seat to help them feel more secure. From here, the nappy can be loosened gradually until it can be removed altogether
Toilet paper can be put in the toilet before a poo to help reduce noise/splash if this is upsetting your child.
Stickers are great for rewarding each stage of progress.
Try not to imply that poo is dirty or wrong. This can lead to withholding behaviour and constipation.
Show you are pleased that poo has come out, and if it has come out in the wrong place, like onto the floor or in their nappy, be clear that you don’t mind about them having a poo, just that it should be in the toilet.
Is my child constipated?
If you are worried about your child and how to spot the signs of constipation, please click on this link. https://www.eric.org.uk/signs-of-constipation
The poo nurses video gives a great explanation of the medications used for constipation.
More and more learning and play is online, but you need to keep your child safe when the internet and technology is developing at such a continued fast pace.
Here are some tips and advice to help keep your child safe online:
Set up parental controls
Parental controls can be used to block harmful or upsetting content for children and are really easy to set up. For more information, visit the NSPCC website.
Control your search engine
Search engines have controls that you can set up to limit what will be retrieved when they search. Activate and lock the safe search settings on the sites that they use.
Protect your device
Every device they have access to should be protected. Controls should be installed on every device your child uses – this includes their games consoles.
Safety measures
Activate the safety measures offered by different sites – make it your responsibility to pro-actively do this.
Pop ups!
Block pop-ups as this will help control what adverts they see.
Do your research
Find good sites and agree as a family that your child can access these. Make sure you continually review these and check the content your children are seeing.
Manage their use and access
Talk to your children about safely using the internet, be open with them and encourage them to speak to you if they have concerns. Remember, not everyone is who they say they are online.