Our Child Safety Blog

APRIL 2024 -Child Safety and Accident Prevention - Safety Made Simple.

Simple changes for parents to stop the scariest accidents.

There are five main ways children get injured in the home –

Falls.
Poisonings.
Threats to breathing – choking suffocation and strangulation.
Drowning.
Burns and Scalds

The most severe injuries are associated with heat-related accidents and falls from a height. Older children are more likely to sustain fractures than younger counterparts. Younger children have a higher percentage of burns and scalds as well as poisoning and ingestion accidents.

Some simple ways to make a big difference –

1) Secure furniture and televisions to prevent tip overs as they can be unstable and top heavy. This becomes more important when children start to explore climbing. If straps are not provided with the furniture make sure to purchase your own. https://www.rospa.com/policy/home-safety/advice/product/flat-screen-tvs

2) Keep furniture away from windows to prevent children climbing up to access to open windows. Use window restrictors to keep windows from opening fully.

3) Keep hot drinks away from counter edges, always push them to the back of the counter. https://www.cbtrust.org.uk/burn-prevention/awareness-campaigns/hot-drinks/

4) Use cupboard locks to secure cupboards with chemicals or medicines in. Keep medicines locked away and out of reach of children.

5) Tie up loose blind cord cables. Children can be strangled on these. https://www.makeitsafe.org.uk/

6) Always use rear cooker rings and turn the pan handles to the side so hands cannot reach up to them.

7) Keep hot irons, curling tongs and hair straighteners out of reach even when cooling down and use heat protection pouches to store them. https://www.cbtrust.org.uk/hair-straighteners-2/

8) When running a bath turn the cold water on first and always test the water temperature with your elbow before letting a child get into the bath or shower.

9) Beware of magnetic toys which may contain super strong magnets. If these magnets are ingested, they can cause life threatening injuries. https://capt.org.uk/magnet-safety/

10) Keep button batteries in mind – even old ones. Keep them stored safely away from children. Be aware of toys that may use button batteries and ensure battery compartments are extremely secure. Button batteries if ingested can also cause exceptional injuries. https://www.gosh.nhs.uk/conditions-and-treatments/conditions-we-treat/button-batteries-using-them-safely/