Safe nursery
Keeping your little ones safe in the nursery .Make sure your baby’s room is safe by checking the furniture and being careful about hazards.
A safe nursery: the basics
Nursery furniture can become faulty and unsafe as a result of normal wear and tear.
It's a good idea to check nursery furniture and accessories regularly for damage or weakness. This is particularly important if you have second-hand nursery furniture.
Be careful about where furniture is placed in the room. Make sure your child cannot reach anything that is dangerous.
How to keep the nursery safe
Check furniture is safe
Check furniture in the nursery for:
- missing or loose parts - holes and gaps can trap heads, fingers and toes
- rough edges or splinters
- torn fabric or plastic - small pieces of plastic and lumps of filling material can choke a small child
- rust or corrosion of metal or splitting of timber
- torn straps or broken buckles on child restraints
- wear and tear on locking devices - nursery equipment can collapse and hurt a child if locking devices do not work
- stability - could the furniture tip over if a child climbs on it?
If in doubt replace or repair the part. If you are unable to repair or replace the part then don't use the item.
Making the environment safe
Safe surroundings for nursery furniture are just as important as the safe design of the furniture itself. Make sure your child cannot reach anything that is dangerous. Secure any unstable equipment to the wall or floor.
Nursery furniture should kept well away from windows, curtains, heaters, pictures on walls, ornaments on shelves, and curtain cords (as these create a risk of strangulation).
Make sure electrical cords are out of reach.
Put safety barriers at the top and bottom of steps and stairs.
View a video on child-proofing your house by the Queensland Office of Fair Trading.
Nappy sacks and risk to babies
At least 11 babies in the UK have died so far from suffocation after pulling nappy sacks stored in their cots, or near to where they had been put to sleep, to their faces. The thinness of the plastic makes it "cling" to the face when breathed in and young babies are unable to pull it away. Read more
