cot mattresses - sprung, pocket sprung, foam...? help!

[Lexilicious]

Bought a mothercare cot at an NCT nearly new sale this morning (and what a melee it was too!). Lucky find really, had just been looking at cots online and got this one for £35 which is at least two-thirds off the price I'd been preparing to pay. Now need a mattress. Have no idea of the benefits of the various types, can only expect that pocket sprung are the "best" as they're the most expensive. What else should I be looking for - waterproofing, anti-allergens, or are those bells-and-whistles that you don't really need?

Hi well i bought a cheaper one at the start ( a mamas n papas that was £50) it was a foam one but afetr only a couple of months use it was sinking in where by baby slept and not coming back up, so i ended up buying a sprung one from mothercare that was £100 and it is tons better plus she sleeps better.
So i would advise getting the better one iinitially as in theory i spent £150!!!

doesn;t matter so long as it has a waterproof zip-off top bit

this is the best invention in the world for midnight vomits
you can whip off the sheet and zip off the top bit and shove the lot in the washer
turn the mattress over so the wipeable side is up and put a clean sheet on so when they (inevitably) vomit again it still won;t soak into the mattress.

I got a very cheap foam one - possibly this one

It has the zip off washable cover. Its not sinking at all yet (DD 9 months) and seems very comfortable.

I don't think they're in a cot long enough to justify spending a lot on the mattress, and you're meant to get a new mattress for each baby so you won't get to use it again.

thanks all! I think I'll go with foam plus layers of good stuff. And kiddicare looks so much cheaper than mothercare!

Yes they are loads cheaper for most stuff - customer service is good too.

I would recommedn anything other than foam in my experience - I have twins so bought foam cotbed mattresses beleiving they would last but after a year both of them are falling apart. The seam is ripping at the part where you have the breathable head end joining the waterproof top layer. I may have just had bad luck or might be down to having the breathable part, however thought i would mention it as I am now having to look out for two sprung ones that hopefully last the distance!!