Got kids? You’ll understand that their happiness, health and wellbeing is your key priority in life. We’re always doing our utmost to make sure that children are safe, so let’s take a moment to look at how to keep them safe in the home! Here are a few simple but important steps you should take to make your home as child-safe and child-friendly as possible.
Opt for Curtains Over Blinds
Before you have kids, chances are, you haven’t put much thought into whether to have blinds or curtains beyond aesthetics and how they look. However, when you have children, you do need to make sure that you’re particularly careful if choosing blinds. Sure, blinds may be lower maintenance and can often look more sleek and minimalist than curtains. But they can pose a threat to young children. Blinds are operated by pulling a string for them to go up and down or across if you have wider windows. These cords attached can be easy for children to get tangled in, and should they tangle around their throat, could result in suffocation. This has, unfortunately, happened many times, which is why blinds come with many warning labels. Either opt for curtains or have blinds properly fitted with the strings out of reach of children.
Avoid Leaving Food Out
Now, this step may be easier said than done when you have kids around, but you should avoid leaving food out. Food attracts animals, whether that’s insects or rodents and can cause a problem with wildlife entering your home. By clearing food away, you can help keep this problem at bay. Clear up immediately after kids’ meals and make sure they’re not stowing snacks away anywhere. If you do end up with animals that are damaging your property and can’t be removed humanely, such as termites, you may find that you need to call pest control.
Fix Furniture to the Walls
Children tend to see furniture as a plaything. They will climb up and over anything they can. So, you need to make sure that your furniture is firmly and professionally fixed to walls. This will prevent your children from having the furniture topple over on top of them if they do end up playing near or on it. If you’re unsure how to do this, handy people and builders can do it on your behalf.
Fit Cupboard Locks and Oven Locks
Kids can get into all sorts of mischief and trouble exploring your home. Make sure to fit any cupboards with locks and make sure to fit your oven knobs with locks too. This can prevent kids from getting into cupboards and getting their hands on harmful substances, such as cleaning products. It can also prevent them from turning the oven on without you knowing.
These are just a few suggestions that will make your home a lot more child friendly. Hopefully, some of them can come in useful for you at some point or another.
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