By Katherine Elizabeth

Children not being potty-trained until four or five is generally due to weak parenting.

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We need to fix the skewed adult-child dynamic so that children learn to be independent rather than being mollycoddled.

By this, I mean that parents do everything for their child, denying them the space or expectation to become independent. Potty training does not simply happen, and children will not just come out of nappies without consistent, calmly applied training.

In the past, when families had lots of children, it was normal for babies to be potty-trained by one or one-and-a-half. Today, parents generally start at around 18 months, yet it is increasingly common for children still to be having frequent toileting accidents when they begin Reception. The latest Kindred Squared School Readiness Survey found that teachers estimated 26% of Reception children were not toilet-trained, rising to 36% in the North East. Staff estimated they spent 1.4........

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