If your newborn baby is one of the many that doesn’t like a bath, there’s no need to worry. Luckily they can do perfectly without them – a daily ‘top and tail’ is all that’s needed in the early weeks.

1 Get everything ready

You will need cotton wool pads, a clean nappy, a soft towel, warm water (cooled from boiling earlier) and something to hold the water in. You can buy specially designed ‘topping and tailing’ containers with two or three sections, but a couple of ordinary, clean bowls will do fine.

It’s also a good idea to either use a changing mat or the bathroom floor. Your baby may not be in the bath, but it’s more or less guaranteed that one of you will knock over the water at some point. Wash your hands, take all his clothes off, but leave the nappy on for now, and wrap him in the soft towel.

2 Start with the eyes

Check the temperature of the water is warm, but not hot, then dip a cotton wool pad into the water, squeeze it out, and clean one eye – wiping from the inside of the eye to the outside. Get a new cotton wool pad and repeat for the other eye.

3 Clean his face and hands

Using a clean cotton wool pad for each, wipe baby's mouth and cheeks, then around his ears (don’t be tempted to use ear buds, the ears are self-cleaning, so there’s no need). Don’t forget the folds under his chin, where milk can get trapped and turn smelly. Using another clean pad, gently uncurl those tight little fists and clean the hands and fingers. Your baby may still have vernix, the creamy substance that formed on his skin in the womb. It’s best not to scrub this off as it’s good for his skin, and will wear off naturally over time.

4 Finish with his bottom

Take off your baby's towel and his nappy (lay the towel across his upper body and tummy to keep him warm) and gently clean his bottom and genitals with more cotton wool pads and water. Gently clean around his testicles but don’t pull back his foreskin – it’s still attached to the penis and will be for a while. If your baby is a girl, don't forget to clean from front to back to avoid spreading infection from the bottom. Then get that clean nappy on quick!