Our Ethical Philosophy

Here at Grafton Childcare we’ve made it our mission to make good choices when it comes to our shopping, we source products from all over the world, that hold the ethical credentials which we know are important to the Grafton Childcare Team, our customers, parents and most importantly the children we care for. 
As a parent you may be new to the idea of ethically-conscious buying or you're very passionate about a whole range of ethical issues that affect what you buy, those values are personal to you. We want you to be  assured that the childcare setting you have chosen for your children shares those same ideals.

Why We Do What We Do

Here at Grafton Childcare we are striving to do our bit to protect our planet, and are constantly making efforts to find eco-friendly alternatives to everyday items we use and purchase such as our staff uniforms, foods, toys, equipment, resources and cleaners that do as little harm to the environment as possible. As part of our original commitment back in January 2018 to cut out the use of single use plastic products here following the BBC’s Blue Planet programme.

Inspiring our children

Most importantly we do what we do to inspire our children to live life to the full, promoting a healthy lifestyle, encouraging our children to enjoy the  beautiful world around us and letting you rest easy knowing we believe you’ve made the most positive choices for your children and our planet, by choosing   Grafton Childcare to provide your childcare needs. So in regular editions of our Grafton Newsletter we share with you the ethical choices we make and how it will impact and effect the day to day running of Grafton Childcare.

Helping Farmers

To help farmers and small businesses primarily in developing countries we try to purchase a minimum of 50% of fairly traded goods, guaranteeing fair prices at every stage of the supply chain so that our Staff, Parents and Children can feel good knowing not a single person has been exploited in the production process, and in fact fair prices are helping to alleviate poverty. We also look closer to home, to UK based brands that have been made right here in Britain utilising local resources and cutting carbon emissions, plastics and unnecessary packaging  through unnecessary imports.

single use plastics

Here at Grafton Childcare we are constantly thinking about what Single Use Plastics we use and ‘if’ we can cut them out altogether. During a full staff meeting in 2018 we had a full and frank discussion on the use of Disposable Gloves which we use when changing nappies and supporting children with any toileting needs etc.
We use around 100 disposable gloves every single week which is rather a scary thought, so that is around 4,900 each year. They are not recycled and are sent home with your children’s disposable nappies and ultimately end up being incinerated. 
We agreed that our staff will use their own judgement to decide if and when they will use a disposable glove. Previously it was a requirement that they wore at least one glove during each nappy change etc But since staff have always been required to wash their hands fully after providing intimate care it really does upon reflection seem a pointless waste of plastic.
We hope that this measure will reduce our use of Disposable Gloves by around 66%.

Miniml Cleaning products

Here at Grafton Childcare as part of our ethical philosophy to reduce the use of plastic and palm oil here we are now using the Miniml range of cleaning products. Miniml are an independent family business who manufacture all of their products in their factory in Yorkshire. 
Ever since they handmade their very first cleaning products in their garage, they have always had full control over research and development. The only difference now is that they use state-of-the-art equipment and technology in their soap factory to ensure they are pioneering the way of green chemistry. 
Miniml are helping shops and other small businesses like Grafton Childcare to create a Zero Waste Supply Chain.
They are committed to changing the way people consume cleaning products by offering cleaning product refills with absolutely no waste. Previously we trialed the Splosh products but sadly their pouches were not being recycled as first advertised, so we have been left feeling rather duped by Splosh.
Although we obviously don’t run a refill shop here at Grafton Childcare, but by collecting our empty containers which we can return to Miniml we are creating our own closed loop supply chain ourselves with Miniml.

All of Miniml’s formulations are Biodegradable, Vegan, Cruelty Free and Palm Oil Free. As well as this their Shampoo, Conditioner and Bodywash are also Sulphate free too which is great for those with sensitive skin. 

Also very important for us here at Grafton Childcare their products do not contains the following items:-
Parabens, Chlorine Bleaches, Optical Brighteners, Thiazolinones, Sulphites, Methylisothiazolinone (CMIT), Gluten, Alcohol, SLS, ALS, ALES,  Formaldehyde or Phosphates.

To start with we shall be swopping over   from Splosh products using Miniml’s own Apple Orchard Washing Up Liquid and their yummy smelling Nutty Almond Floor Cleaner which is doing a lovely job on our new tiled floors here at Grafton. As well as their Sweet Clemintine Anti-Bac Liquid Hand Soap which the staff and children are using multiple times a day when we are washing our hands.

As we introduce other items from their range to our cleaning arsenal here at Grafton we shall let you all know.