When it comes to health and wellbeing, a good night’s sleep is incredibly important. As your mattress plays a key role in the quality of your slumber, finding the right one for you is crucial. While the perfect mattress will help provide all the sleep support your body needs, sadly it won’t last forever; with daily wear and tear, even your much-loved and trusted mattress will eventually need replacing. 

The kind of mattress a child needs changes as they grow. Ensuring that they have the right support is essential, as a good night’s sleep will set them up for the day ahead.

All the mattresses in our children’s range are comfortable but designed to offer firmer support – whether fibre or pocket sprung – because a mattress that’s too soft can have a negative impact on growing bones. 

Before choosing a mattress, consider your child’s age, size of bed and the room temperature, and read our children's room buying guide.

For children weighing less than eight stone, we recommend a soft-tension mattress. Pocket springs offer the best support for a growing body, while natural materials help with breathability.

There is no one-size-fits-all rule regarding how often you should replace a spare mattress, or a bed in a guest room that is not used often. It should last beyond the seven years recommended for mattresses that are in frequent daily use. There are warning signs to look out for though, which help to indicate that your mattress needs replacing:

• General wear and tear – sagging, lumps, rips, or being able to feel the springs
• If you wake up feeling achey, or have back pain after sleeping on it
• Rolling into the middle of the bed (increased motion transfer)
• Development of allergies or symptoms that worsen outside hay fever season
• The mattress starts creaking or making noises
• Unpleasant odours
  

There are quick and easy ways to make your mattress last longer, giving you a better night’s sleep for the maximum number of years:

1. Rotate your mattress

A general guideline is to rotate a mattress every three to six months to even out weight distribution. Rotate memory foam designs every week when new, reducing to once every few months when they’ve had some regular use.

For sprung mattresses, rotate as well as flip every week for three months from new, before reducing to once every three months. Some mattresses are not designed to be rotated, so check the manufacturer’s specific instructions.

2. Use a mattress topper

A mattress topper is like a mini mattress that sits on top of your existing mattress, which can make it feel softer or more comfortable while also extending its life. They’re available with all sorts of fillings, from memory foam to down, so you can find one to suit your sleeping style and preferences.

3. Vary your sleeping position

It sounds like common sense, but most of us are creatures of habit and generally sleep on the same side of the bed in the same position. If you’ve got the bed to yourself, switch sides regularly to redistribute the weight on the mattress. If you sleep with a partner, switch sides to vary the weight.

4. Use a mattress protector

We always recommend a mattress protector to prolong the life of your mattress. It’s difficult to remove stains from the surface of a mattress, but a protector is easy to wash and waterproof designs are must-haves for kids’ beds.

A mattress protector can also help prevent dust mites from reaching your mattress, alleviating allergies. Look for specialist options, such as anti-allergen designs and those that help regulate temperature through the night.

5. Let it air

Don’t make your bed as soon as you get out of it in the morning. Instead, pull back the duvet (completely off the bed if you can) to allow sweat, drool and oils that we secrete during the night to evaporate. This reduces the bacterial growth in your mattress and bed.

If you can, visit your nearest John Lewis store to try out mattresses and get advice on the best style for you from our expert Partners.

Simon Williams of the National Bed Federation says:

"It may sound obvious, but get on the bed and see how it feels. Don’t be afraid to spend at least 10 minutes lying on the mattress in your normal sleeping position. If you’ll be sharing the bed, make sure you take your partner with you and try it out together."

If you’re not able to visit a store straight away, our one-to-one Virtual Sleep Appointments can get you started. One of our expert Partners will provide personalised recommendations, as well as suggesting the top complementary products to help you get the best night’s sleep possible.

Mattress recycling is a big environmental issue, but at John Lewis we can take your old mattress away for a small additional charge and recycle it responsibly. Some of our ranges, such as the British Natural Collection, are glue-free and 100-per-cent recyclable, so nothing goes to landfill.