Children are curious little adventurers, and it’s only natural for them to have accidents as they grow, develop and explore the environment around them.
Child Safety Week is the perfect opportunity to remind parents and carers of how to keep their children safe, and share some advice around avoiding accidental harm.
Warwickshire County Council (WCC) is supporting the annual Child Safety Week campaign next week (6 – 12 June), a national awareness campaign from the Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT). This year, Child Safety Week has a theme of ‘Safety in mind’ to make sure busy families have the ‘Safety in mind’ that really matters, especially when under pressure.
WCC and its partners work together every day to protect children and families, but use the campaign week to give extra focus to some of the support available to help people keep their children safe in and outside the home.
Throughout the week, the Council will be sharing advice and themed posts around some of the actions people can take to keep children safe. For Child Safety Week tips and learning resources follow WCC on Facebook and Twitter or sign up to the Family Information Service Newsletter for a whole host of advice.
The daily challenge for many, of juggling work and taking care of children, can easily lead to distraction. Accidents resulting in scalds, falls, choking, cuts and poisoning can be avoided by taking time each day to ensure children have a safe and supervised area to play in. People should check that electrical items are off, hot things, chemicals and medications are out of reach and toys are age appropriate and cleared away.
With the summer fast approaching and the weather getting warmer, windows will be opened in homes across the county in the hope of catching a breeze. People are urged to take extra care when opening windows and not to leave small children unattended near them. If possible, for extra peace of mind, window catches, locks or restrictors are recommended.
Tragic accidents caused by parents co-sleeping with their babies have also occurred as babies who cannot roll away are at risk of suffocation. The best way to keep babies safe when they’re sleeping is in a cot of their own.
Child Safety Week is also the perfect opportunity to teach families about fire safety. Teaching children about staying safe from fire at an early stage in a fun and interactive way will help them to gain the skills needed to keep themselves fire safe. Families should also have an escape route planned in their home in the event of a fire.
Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Leader of the Council said: “Child Safety Week should be the catalyst for conversations around safety for families and professionals working with children around Warwickshire.
“As part of our Child Friendly Warwickshire programme, we want all children to be safe, so raising awareness around child accident prevention is crucial to this. Most accidents can be prevented by just taking a few small steps.
“We’re sharing resources and information for parents and carers to build confidence and skills in managing the real risks to children's safety. Accidents can of course still happen, so please still see a medical professional if your child does get hurt.
“We want all children to have the freedom to grow and learn, safe from serious harm.”
Learn more about fire safety and planning a home escape route.
Find out more about Child Safety Week and download CAPT’s Parent Pack for lots of tips to keep your child safe.
Useful child accident prevention resources
Sign up to the weekly Family Information Service newsletter
Child Safety Week is the flagship annual campaign from the Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT), the UK’s leading charity committed to reducing the number of children and young people killed, disabled or seriously injured in preventable accidents.
The charity strives to secure a safer environment for children of all ages, so they can live life to the full while protected from serious injury or death. Child Safety Week enables the council, alongside CAPT, to do this by promoting safety messages to families in an engaging way.