One In Four School Starters Is Still In Nappies Due To Parents Who Think Toilet Training Is Not Their Job

One in four children starting reception are not toilet trained, and the same proportion cannot eat independently, a new survey suggests.

An annual poll of 1,000 primary school teachers saw a rise in children failing to learn the fundamental skills they need for school.

On average, teachers spend an hour and a half every day either changing nappies or helping children use the toilet – the equivalent of an entire school day per week.

Respondents reported that an average of 26 per cent of the children in their reception class this year experienced frequent toilet accidents, up from 24 per cent in the previous two years.

The worst-affected area was the North East, where 36 per cent of school-starters were not toilet-trained.

Teachers said the frequent toileting interruptions led to a ‘stop-start’ day, with 70 per cent saying it had an impact on class progress.

One deputy headteacher told researchers: ‘It’s definitely getting worse. If you go back ten years, you wouldn’t have had children coming into reception who needed toilet training, and now it’s almost the expectation that schools will do it.’

A reception teacher added: ‘Parents don’t think it’s their job. They’re very happy to give that to someone else. You know, someone else will potty train my child.’

Another said some parents ‘decide’ their child has special needs because it ‘absolves them of any responsibility to do anything about it’.

And a teaching assistant told researchers that the whole of the first term was ‘written off’ at her school due to staff having to toilet train and teach other basic skills.

The researchers also questioned 1,000 parents, with 22 per cent saying they did not think a child needs to be toilet-trained by the time they start reception.

The report, by Kindred Squared, an early years charity, comes after the Government launched a push to get more children to be ‘school-ready’.

This means they have hit specific developmental milestones such as basic language skills, being able to eat, go to the toilet, and dress themselves unaided, and being able to sit, play and listen.

However, the teacher poll discovered 37 per cent of children are starting reception not school-ready, up from 33 per cent in 2024.

Staff also report that about 28 per cent of children started school unable to eat and drink unaided.

And the same proportion were not able to use books correctly – for instance, they were trying to swipe or tap them like a phone or tablet.

Over half of the staff said children’s and parents’ excessive screentime was a key factor in children not being ready for school.

Kindred Squared chief executive Felicity Gillespie said: ‘The state of school readiness has reached a critical moment.

‘This is no longer just a classroom issue; it is a systemic crisis fuelled by stretched school resources, low expectations, the rising cost of living, and by parents who lack the right information and understanding.’

A Department for Education spokesman said: ‘This Government has a clear mission to make sure tens of thousands more children start school ready to learn, and we are already taking action to make that a reality.

‘We are seeing early signs of improvement, with more children reaching a good level of development by age five, but we know there is further to go.

‘We inherited a system where disadvantage was allowed to deepen, and these findings underline the scale of the school readiness challenge we are determined to tackle, so every child gets the best possible start in life.’

Parenting and raising your child to be a nice person used to be a source of pride. Similar to how wild animals educate their young on how to live and thrive, life has expectations that begin at birth.

Now, it’s pull up nappies with an iPad in one hand and chicken nuggets in the other. Baby bottles full of sugary drink – good to go, with mum and dad watching TV, phones to scroll, vapes to puff and a beer to drink with their mates.

All of this is really terrifying. What kind of parents do these kids have, really? And things are going to get a whole lot worse with all this soft parenting. Children’s behaviour is already off the charts.

Parents have a responsibility, and if they don’t believe that they are responsible, then they shouldn’t be having children – it’s as straightforward as that.

Not toilet-trained, don’t worry, the school will do that. Can’t use a knife and fork, don’t worry, the school will do that. Can’t be bothered to feed your child, don’t worry, there’s Breakfast clubs for that because parents can now abdicate so much of their child’s upbringing, so why bother having children at all?