Home safety

As your child grows, they become interested in touching and exploring anything within reach.

You may not be able to prevent every bump and scrape but some simple safety measures will lower the risk of accidents.

Toys

When babies roll and crawl they learn by pulling and touching everything. Babies are too young to understand that certain objects can break or can hurt them. Toys need to be right for your child’s age. Younger children can choke on small pieces of toys being played with by older children.

Check your child’s toys are large enough to prevent choking and that they are unbreakable and free of sharp edges and small bits that could be broken off, swallowed or choked on. Anything smaller than about 35mm, or the size of a golf ball, can go in their mouth and choke them.

Keep older children’s small toys out of your baby’s reach and move precious or dangerous things out of reach. Avoid toys with elastic or strings that could twist around your baby’s neck or fingers, throwing away deflated and burst balloons, as pieces can be breathed in and cannot be easily removed from their mouth.

Sharp & dangerous

Keep sharp knives and scissors out of reach.

Store guns, bolts and ammunition separately, in separate locked areas.

For more child safety information, visit www.acc.co.nz/childsafety or phone 0800 THINKSAFE.