Did you know that many local councils in Australia offer cloth nappy rebates? Progressive councils are taking action in a bid to reduce household waste and support a sustainable future. This means you might already be able to access cash-back simply for choosing to use cloth nappies. This blog brings you up to speed on what’s being done now by local councils, and what you can do to drive positive action in your local area.
What rebates are councils currently offering?
A number of city councils already offer rebates to cloth nappy users. We’ve done our homework to help you benefit as a cloth nappy household. Note that the below list is current as of March 2020, if you have an update or if we’ve missed a great offer from your local council, please let us know so we can keep this page up to date. Email hello@econaps.com.au.
Queensland
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Brisbane City Council runs a Sustainable Nappy Cashback program. Residents can enter a monthly draw to win back your reusable cloth nappy investment valued up to $300. Learn more >
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Logan City Council offers a Sustainable Reusable Nappy Draw for parents using modern cloth nappy products, even if only part time. Every month you get the chance to win a $50 VISA gift card for making the switch to cloth. Learn more >
Victoria
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Cardinia Shire offered a rebate for reusable nappies and accessories, however they have reached the allocated 2019–20 budget due to popularity. It looks like cloth nappies are catching on! The rebate will be reviewed before the next financial year. Learn more >
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City of Casey offers a one-off rebate per household for reusable cloth nappy use up to $150 in value. This includes cloth and swim nappies, reusable liners, reusable wipes, wet bags and reusable breast pads. Learn more >
Western Australia
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Shire of Augusta offers a Cloth Nappy Subsidy to help parents choose real cloth nappies over disposable nappies. The Shire will subsidise up to $100 per household. They ask parents “would you rather 3000 disposables or 15 cloth nappies?”, we know what we’d choose. Learn more >
South Australia
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City of Holdfast Bay offers plenty of green living tips and rebates for residents, including a modern cloth nappy rebate. Get a 50% rebate valued up to $100 on your cloth nappy purchases for the 2019-20 financial year. Learn more >
Don’t see your council?
Here’s what you can do to encourage your council to offer a cloth nappy rebate or subsidy.
Write a letter
Putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) is one of the best ways to get your council to listen. It’s your local Councillor's job to hear what’s important to you and respond with relevant initiatives that serve the community and the local environment.
Tips for writing an effective letter:
1. Find out who your local Councillor is and address them directly or the Environmental representative.
2. Check your voting details here and update before sending your letter.
3. Make your letter personal by introducing yourself.
4. Add the issue you want to address.
5. Include a working example from one of the councils above to demonstrate that other councils have successfully implemented a modern cloth nappy rebate scheme. 6. Explain why this issue is important to you.
7. Finish by adding some action and don’t be afraid to follow up a few weeks later if you haven’t had a reply. To make it even easier to take action, we have created a template for you to use. Click here to download.
Start a petition
If you have a passionate community or group of parents who believe in reducing landfill and protecting the environment, rally together and start a petition. Platforms like change.org are designed specifically for this purpose and make it to share your message and collect signatures. We recently saw one by a resident of Bayside City Council in Victoria doing just that, check it out here and follow their lead! Then write your letter with your petition signatures attached.
There you have it! Please share this post and take action to help make cloth nappies mainstream. Not only can you reduce waste and save money with cloth nappies, you’ll also know you’ve made an impact to keep our planet clean and green for future generations.
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