How can I make my home safer for children?

Having a home that’s kid-friendly is incredibly important to the safety and comfort of you and your family.

You may be concerned about your child’s safety in your home, and/or giving them places where they can just be a kid without causing harm to your good furniture or guest spaces. 

We’ve broken down some of our top tips on how to make your home a kid-friendly paradise that’s still enjoyable for adults. 

1. Rounded Furniture

Kids are clumsy, that is a fact! Getting rounded or soft furniture whenever available, like round kitchen tables, circular side tables, or soft-edged TV stands will reduce the chance of injury for your children when they’re running around, or may fall. If you have sharp-edged furniture you want to keep, it may be wise to invest in some edge protectors to keep your little ones safe. 

2. Furniture that can’t fall over - AKA “anti-tip”

Children are notorious for grabbing onto things - depending on their age, it may be to stabilize themselves, or perhaps just to shake them around and see what happens. Whenever possible, you’ll want to ensure your furniture is secured to the wall, or heavy enough/stable enough that it won’t fall over. Things like tall dressers can be incredibly dangerous if children open a drawer and hang on. Especially in spaces they may be unsupervised, like a playroom or their bedroom, you’ll want low furniture that can’t tip or furniture that is screwed securely into the wall. 

3. Set them up for success with easy-clean paint

In spaces your children will be playing or unsupervised, set everyone up for easy cleaning with washable paint. This way stains, marks, and other messes are easily wiped up without too much drama. 

4. Ditch the carpet

Whenever possible, it’ll save you a ton of trouble if you don’t have carpet in children’s rooms. Spills are way too common, and while they can be quickly wiped up off of hardwood, they may stain deep into the carpet and cost a small fortune to fully clean. 

5. Washable rugs

Of course, hardwood floor is less than comfortable, and kids love to sit on the floor and play. If you invest in an area rug, take a look at the plenty available online that are machine washable. If there’s a spill or a mess made, they can be easily tossed into the washer and dryer, and be back on the floor in a number of hours! 

6. Invest in storage - on your kid’s level

If you want your kids to be able to get toys themselves, and hopefully learn to put them away, invest in storage solutions that they can reach. If there are special toys you want control over, perhaps those can go at a higher level where they can’t be accessed! But in general, empowering your children to choose their own toys and put them away when they’re done is a great way to reduce your own workload and teach your children valuable skills!

7. Practice pool safety

If you have a pool in your backyard, you’ll want to ensure that nobody is accidentally falling in. Some neighbourhoods enforce a double-gating system, where the backyard is gated in, and then the pool is separated by a further gate. There are also pool alarms that can alert you when a person has accidentally fallen in. Ensuring there are no tripping hazards within a few feet of the pool is another wise decision, and of course, speaking with your children about pool safety and getting them in swim classes as soon as possible is crucial!

8. Utilize baby gates for dangerous or important areas of your home

Don’t overlook the value of simply shutting out areas that you don’t want your kids! Whether that's the office, the fancy front room, or the dangerous staircase, simply shutting off access is sometimes the easiest and safest option. 

9. Put up cameras

If you want to be able to do your own thing at home, but are worried about your children getting into trouble while you’re in another room, a baby monitor or any of the newly designed high-tech cameras can help you keep an eye on your kids. Some of them even allow you to talk to them through the camera - cool!

10. Lock things up

Making dangerous items like chemicals and knives inaccessible is the fastest and easiest way to ensure that your kids are kept safe.