Things you might need when starting out:
Moses basket, or the top off a pram (just while baby is sleeping in the same room as you for a few weeks);
A spare room?!
A cot or cot-bed and all the linen and blankets etc;
A mobile for the cot to provide a stimulus and soothing music at sleep-time;
A changing mat;
A pushchair or pram (and, later, a cheap light-weight buggy);
Feeding bottles and sterilizer (and breast pump if you're going to express milk);
Some people think you need to buy a dummy. Ignore them. Do without.
An inflatable baby-bath, or an insert for your on bath;
Lots of cotton wool to wash baby (don't use wet wipes or soap yet);
Later, when baby is bigger, baby-shampoo and soap, and a zillion wet-wipes;
A "baby-gym" or something similar to keep baby entertained while on the floor;
Some baby-grows/jumpsuits/bodysuits/whatever you want to call them;
Lots of nappies! (see below)
Bags of patience!
We've probably forgotten something obvious! Or not-so-obvious, but really useful nonetheless! Please send an email if that's the case...
NAPPIES - If you don't want to add to the growing mountain of used disposable nappies, lots of people (including us!) use modern cotton nappies with waterproof "wraps" (like pants). Some people say that babies in cotton nappies toilet-train more easily because they actually feel wet when they've done a wee, and so learn to associate the feeling with the action. A half-way house might be to consider biodegradable nappies, e.g. "Nature Boy & Girl", available from Sainsbury's - also see LINKS to nappy websites