How To Make Your Home Child Proof

Data released by the Child Accident Prevention Trust shows that as many as one million children are admitted to hospitals each year following accidents at home. Here is a handy guide to help you to make your home toddler-proof/child-proof and minimize the risk of accidents. For more information and regular updates related to safety, you can also check out the website of the Child Accident Prevention Trust.

Kitchen

Kitchen is the most dangerous room as far as a child is concerned. This is because toxic as well as harmful household products like bleach are stored in the kitchen. Therefore, you must ensure that such products are stored in cupboards that have child-proof latches. Additionally, the drawers that store knives and other dangerous objects should also have safety latches.

As your children grow older, a child-proof lock may not be safe enough. Therefore, store dangerous chemicals either in lockable cupboards or outside the house.

Keep blenders, kettles, coffee machines and other appliances at the back of the worktop. Ensure that the cables of these appliances are tied up and tucked away out of reach of children.

Use the hobs’ back burners and ensure that the handles of the saucepan face the back.

Do not allow your children to wander around in the kitchen when you are cooking or handling hot water, etc. Never cook when you are carrying hot items or holding your child.

Ensure that hot items are kept away from the edge of the worktop and avoid using a tablecloth. Your child may pull out the table cloth.

Use high chairs with straps, but do not leave your child unattended.

Make your rubbish bin child proof.

Living room

Avoid open fires. Use a hearth gate or a fireguard. Keep all firelighting products safely.

Cover furniture’s and tables’ sharp edges with special protectors.

Keep poisonous house plants out of reach of children.

Secure things that can topple to the walls.

Stick visible markers on patio glass doors. Use only safety glass.

Bathroom

Use non-slip bath mats or bath dots. Never leave your children unattended in the bath.

Use water at the right temperature.

To prevent toddlers from falling into the toilet bowl, fix toilet locks. This also prevents seats and lids from falling on to your child’s fingers.

Keep all medicines, vitamins, beauty products, and cleaning agents out of reach of children.

Bedroom

Never leave your baby in the cot for too long. Put the baby in its bed before it can climb out.

Never leave your child at the top in a bunk bed till the child is five years old.

Avoid using clothes with draw strings as night dress.

Always unplug hairdryers, hair straighteners, etc. after use and keep them out of reach.

Nursery

Use a bed guard when your little one moves from the cot to bed. Use soft close toy chests with air gap.

Place furniture away from windows. Small children are tempted to climb out.

Everywhere In the House

Fix safety gates at the top as well as bottom of the stairs or other places where you want to restrict access to your child.

Never store items on stairs.

Ensure that the cord strings on blinds/curtains are not looped.

In the garden

To avoid accidental drowning, cover ponds by infilling with sand or circling with a fence.

Never leave your child unattended wherever there is water.

Always keep the shed locked.

General advice

On doors, use finger guards.

Make sure that your home complies with all fire safety standards.

Install adequate numbers of smoke/carbon monoxide detectors. Check them frequently.

Ensure all dangling cords are out of your children’s reach.