Single-Parents.net

Keeping your young children safe is your responsibility.

TRAFFIC SAFETY

• Make fences and gates toddler proof.
• Toddlers need to be held when they are near roads. They may begin to remember rules about crossing roads but they are unable to understand them, no matter how many times they are told.
• Your child must be in an approved child restraint in the car.
• Make sure that there is nothing on the dashboard. Even a box of tissues can do a lot of harm in an accident.
• Never put anything heavy in the back of a hatchback unless it secured strongly.
• When you are moving the car at home, it is safest to have your child in the car, so she cannot be run over.
• When planning play spaces in your yard, keep children's areas well away from the driveway, fenced off if possible.
• Never leave children alone in cars.

SCOOTERS

Scooters are very popular with children and young people but there are safety aspects to be considered as they can cause injuries, sometimes serious injuries.

Scooters are considered "wheeled toys" if ridden by children under 12 years of age, but are considered "bicycles" if ridden by young people over 12 years of age. This means that children over 12 years of age are not allowed to ride them on the footpath and must ride on the road. To ride them on the road the child would have to obey normal road rules, have a bell, [and lights and red reflector if riding at night] and it would be very dangerous.

If your children are riding scooters here are some safety suggestions.

• Choose scooters with larger, rather than smaller wheels if possible.
• Give your child lots of practice in riding safely while you are watching and helping.

Where to ride
Make sure your child does not ride the scooter -

• in traffic
• where there are people walking
• on rough surfaces
• on steep slopes.

Safety Equipment
The following equipment will help protect your child from injuries.

• Helmet (this is required by law)
• Knee guards
• Elbow guards
• Wrist guards (many injuries from scooters are on the lower arms).

Note: The Australian Road Rules are being reviewed and laws relating to scooters may be changed.

SKATEBOARDS 

Falls from skateboards are common, both at home and in public places, and often result in injuries.

Here are some tips for safe skateboarding:

• For beginners make sure the skateboard has slower wheels eg soft or used wheels. Fast wheels can be fitter when the child is experienced enough to manage them.
• Children should wear helmets and wrist guards while skateboarding.
• Teach or have beginners taught the skills of balance and control in a safe place.

FALLS

Falls are the major cause of toddler injury.

• Don't use bunk beds with toddlers.
• Use straps in the high chair and pusher.
• Don't leave young children alone on change tables, high chairs etc.
• Teach your toddler how to climb down as she is learning to climb up.
• Leave ladders lying down so children cannot climb up them (they make good "cars" and "buses".

BURNS AND SCALDS

• Keep hot things well back from the edge of tables, turn saucepan handles away from the edge of the stove. Use a stove guard.
• Use placemats instead of tablecloths.
• Have short or curly electric cords that don't hang over the side of benches.
• Remember that many toddlers can light matches and lighters, and unscrew the globes of the Christmas tree lights.
• To help prevent scalding from hot water, make sure that the water from your bathroom taps comes out at 50 degrees centigrade or less. You can get a device to attach to the tap to mix hot water with cold. If you have a 'storage' hot water system  you should not lower the temperature of your water heater below 60 degrees centigrade. In hot water systems, bacteria may grow if the water temperature is too low (below 45). To be sure that bacteria are not growing keep the water over 60.
• Run cold water into the bath first.
• Use fireguards for open fires and radiators.

Note:  If a child has a burn or scald, hold the burnt area under running cold water for at least 20 minutes (see the topics BURNS and SCALDS for more information)

POISONING

Toddlers explore everywhere they can reach and still put things into their mouths. They cannot understand poison signs.

• Keep kitchen and laundry detergents out of reach, best in a locked cupboard. Dishwasher powder is particularly dangerous.
• Cigarettes and cigarette ash are poisonous.  A baby or child can be very sick if a cigarette or just one butt is eaten. Cigarette packets and ashtrays need to be kept out of reach.
• Use a child proof medicine cupboard for all medicines (including oral contraceptives).
• Check that visitors don't leave bags with tablets in them in your child's reach.
• Lock garden products away.
• Keep poisons in their original, labelled containers.
• Never put poisons into food or drink containers.

Common poisons that harm young children include: 

• insect poisons and garden sprays, petrol fumes and cleaners, poisonous plants, dishwasher powder, oven cleaner, drain cleaner and other cleaning substances. 
• Check carefully around your home for these and other poisons.

WRITE THE POISONS INFORMATION NUMBER NEXT TO YOUR PHONE

CHOKING AND SUFFOCATING

• Check that there are no small objects or coins lying around.
• Don't give your child hard pieces of food such as raw carrot to chew. Give cooked or grated vegetables.
• Toddlers should sit still when eating.
• Stay with your child when your child is eating.
• Never give toddlers peanuts or other nuts.
• Don't force your child to eat anything he does not want.
• Tie plastic bags with a knot in the middle so that they cannot be put over your child's head.
• Cords or ribbons on toys and dummies and clothing should be short so they can't choke your child.
• Cords on curtains and blinds need to be short or out of reach.
• Replace dummies before they are worn out.
• Some antique cots are not safe for young children because gaps between bars are too small or too large (see topic SAFE SLEEP).

DROWNING

Most children who drown are under four years old. Drowning happens very quickly and quietly. Young children can drown in only a few centimetres of water. Teaching your toddler to swim will not prevent drowning.

• Stay with your child whenever he is near or in water, such as the bath, paddle pool or buckets.
• Keep a lid on nappy buckets and keep them out of reach.
• Water can collect in all sorts of things after rain. Empty them!
• Always make sure that the paddle pool is emptied after use. Every time!
• All other pools should be fenced without direct access from the house and with a self locking gate.
• Garden ponds need to be fenced or covered by a strong mesh.

PLAY

• Check equipment regularly for sharp edges, splinters and loose parts.
• The surface under climbing frames and swings needs to be soft.
• Toys for young children should not have small loose parts that can be broken off and swallowed.
• Baby walkers often cause injuries and should not be used.

SUN

• Whenever possible keep children in the shade. Teach them to play in the shade.
• Make sure that their favourite play areas are shaded.
• Children can get sunburnt even on cold, cloudy summer days.
• Sunlight through the glass of car windows can burn the skin.
• Young children can become very quickly overheated in parked cars.
• In the sun use a hat and clothing that covers arms and legs, such as the new cover-up bathers.
• Sunscreen can be used in small amounts on young children on areas that are not covered by clothing. Some sunscreens irritate the eyes and sensitive skin. It needs to be re-applied often. Zinc cream is an effective sun block.

LIGHTNING

If you get caught out in the open in an electrical storm here are some things you can do.

• Get into shelter if you can - a building or a car (not a convertible).
• Don't touch anything metal - umbrella, gate, tent pole.
• The tallest thing that is close to you is the most likely to be hit - tree, pole, even haystack - so keep away from it.
• Don't stick together in a group - if you are not close together someone will be able to go for help if you need it.
• Don't stand with feet apart - this can cause worse burns if you get hit.
• Make yourself small - curl up on the ground away from tall objects - in a ditch if there is one.

SHOPPING

• Never leave young children alone in the car while you shop.
• Supermarket shopping carts can tip up even if you are using the safety seat, especially if a toddler pulls on them.
• Don't let young children wander in the aisles while you shop.

REMINDERS

• Have emergency phone numbers near the phone (police, doctor, poisons information).
• Have a first aid kit in the house and car.
• Install an Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker in your fuse box.
• Install a smoke detector.
• Check that homes you visit with your child are safe.
• Do a first aid course which includes emergency resuscitation so you will know what to do.