Christmas baby-proofing: a festive safety guide for babies and toddlers

Christmas is one of the most-loved times of year in any family home, and one of the busiest. The tree goes up, new things arrive in boxes, the oven runs for hours, visitors come and go, and the usual routine goes out the window. For a baby who's just learned to crawl or a toddler who climbs everything, that's a lot of new and very tempting things at once.

We're Dave and Alan, two brothers and dads, and we've had a few lively Christmases with small children ourselves. This guide pulls together festive advice from RoSPA, CAPT, the NHS, the HSE Child Safety Checklist and the UK Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), so you can enjoy the day with a little more peace of mind.

The one thing to remember: RoSPA points out that with more adults around at Christmas, everyone can assume someone else is watching the children. Agree who's on duty, and swap over during the day.

The Christmas tree

To a toddler, a tree covered in shiny things is irresistible. A few simple steps reduce the risk of it coming down on them:

• Secure the tree. Ards and North Down Borough Council's home safety team advises making sure your tree is securely fastened so it can't be pulled down by babies, toddlers or pets.
• Use a sturdy stand and put the tree away from doorways and busy walkways, and away from radiators, fireplaces and candles.
• Keep breakable decorations up high. Metal, sharp or breakable decorations, and anything with small parts that come off, should be kept away from young children, according to East Sussex County Council. Hang them on the upper branches and keep the lower ones for soft, unbreakable decorations.
• Use a stepladder when you're putting up decorations.

Decorations, fairy lights and button batteries

RoSPA warns that Christmas novelties and decorations are not toys and don't have to meet toy safety rules, even when they look like toys. Keep them high up and out of reach of little hands.

• Check your fairy lights before they go up. CAPT advises looking for frayed or loose cords and avoiding overloaded sockets or extension leads. RoSPA suggests replacing old sets of lights.
• Switch lights off at bedtime and when you go out.
• Tidy trailing cables from lights and new gadgets so they can't be pulled or tripped over.
• Watch for button batteries. They turn up in light-up novelties, flashing cards, musical hats, battery tea lights and remote controls. CAPT warns that a swallowed button battery can kill a child, and the NHS says they can cause serious internal burns. If you use electric candles, RoSPA advises making sure the batteries can't be reached.

Our guide to button batteries, magnets and other hidden hazards explains where else they hide and what to do if you think one has been swallowed. If you're ever in doubt, get urgent medical help straight away.

Presents, toys and packaging

Present opening is exciting and chaotic, and it's easy for small parts and batteries to end up on the floor.

• Follow the age label. The OPSS explains that age labels on toys reflect an assessment of risks such as choking. The NHS advises keeping toys meant for older children away from babies and toddlers, as they may have small parts.
• Buy from reputable sellers and look for a CE, UKCA or UKNI mark. RoSPA also suggests checking for product recalls before you give a gift.
• Check battery compartments. The OPSS advises making sure any button battery is securely screwed in before you hand a toy over. CAPT suggests quietly removing easy-to-reach button batteries from toys and novelties, and checking the box for spares.
• Look out for magnets and water beads. RoSPA warns that small, high-strength magnets and water beads can cause serious internal injuries if swallowed.
• Clear up as you go. The OPSS recommends clearing away packaging, plastic bags and wire once presents are unwrapped. RoSPA suggests keeping scissors and screwdrivers handy so nobody reaches for a kitchen knife to open boxes.
• Buy the batteries in advance, so nobody is tempted to take them out of a smoke alarm.

Candles and open fires

• Never leave burning candles unattended, and keep them out of children's reach and away from the tree, cards, curtains, decorations and wrapping paper. CAPT reminds us that candles near the tree can burn, real or fake.
• Keep cards and decorations away from fires and other heat sources, such as light fittings.
• Use a fireguard on open fires and heaters. The NHS and HSE both advise a guard fixed to the wall, with nothing placed on top or hung from it.
• Keep matches and lighters in a high, locked cupboard, as the HSE recommends.
• Test your smoke alarms before the festivities start.

Christmas dinner, hot drinks and the kitchen

With the oven on for hours and lots of people in the kitchen, this is where burns and scalds can happen. CAPT and RoSPA advise:

• Keep children out of the kitchen if you can, and away from the cooker.
• Use the back rings and turn pan handles inwards.
• Give yourself plenty of time to cook, as rushing leads to accidents, and wipe up spills straight away.
• Use a travel cot or strap little ones into the high chair while food is being served.

An oven door lock is a simple extra step that can help keep curious hands from opening a hot oven while the turkey's in. Our guide to baby-proofing your kitchen covers the rest of the room.

Hot drinks go round all day at Christmas. The NHS notes that a hot drink can still scald 15 minutes after it was made. CAPT's tip is to put coasters out of reach of little hands so every visitor knows where to put their mug down.

At the table, CAPT advises cutting food like pigs in blankets, vegetables and cheese long and narrow rather than chunky, and cutting up anything round.

Alcohol, medicines and visitors' bags

Visitors bring presents, but they can also bring medicines, vapes and cosmetics into the house without thinking about it.

• Keep alcohol locked away. The HSE advises storing alcohol, cigarettes and e-cigarettes in a high, locked cupboard. Ireland's National Poisons Information Centre has also warned that drink left in the bottom of glasses is a risk to children who are up early the next morning, so clear away glasses before bed.
• Put visitors' bags out of sight and reach. The HSE notes that medicine, cosmetics and hand gel in handbags can poison children. Offer guests a high shelf or a spare room for coats and bags.
• Lock medicines away. The NHS says medicines are the most common cause of hospital admissions for poisoning in under-5s. Magnetic cupboard locks or adhesive cabinet straps can help keep a cupboard of medicines, alcohol or spare batteries closed to little hands.
• Take care with festive plants. The HSE checklist advises removing poisonous plants from your home. In Ireland, if your child has eaten any part of a plant, call the Poisons Information Centre on 01 809 2166 (8am to 10pm).

Visiting family and friends

Grandparents' and friends' homes often aren't set up for small children. If young guests are coming to you, RoSPA suggests taking a look around your home first and thinking about what could be a risk to them. When you're the visitor, CAPT advises:

• Move medicines and cleaning products out of reach when you arrive, checking the bedside tables and beside the loo.
• Check blind cords are out of reach, as looped cords are a strangulation risk.

Enjoy the day

No home can be made completely risk-free at Christmas or any other time, and nothing replaces keeping an eye on your child. A quick check of the tree, the lights, the presents and the kitchen, and a clear plan for who's watching the little ones, goes a long way. In an emergency, call 999 or 112 (both work in the UK and Ireland).

From our families to yours, we hope you have a happy and relaxed Christmas.