When to start baby-proofing: a stage-by-stage timeline

When should you start baby-proofing? A little before you think you need to. Babies learn new skills quickly, and a baby who couldn't roll yesterday can roll off the sofa today.

This timeline walks through each stage of your child's first few years, what changes at each one, and what the NHS and the HSE recommend you do about it. The HSE advises putting safety measures in place before your child reaches the next stage, so it's worth reading one stage ahead.

A note on ages: every child develops at their own pace, so the ages here are rough guides only. NHS Healthier Together notes that these skills all fall within a range of normal ages, and some babies bottom-shuffle or go straight from sitting to standing instead of crawling. Watch your own child, not the calendar.

Before your baby arrives and the newborn months

A newborn can't move far, so this stage is less about locks and more about sleep, bath time and the basics of a safe home.

• Set up safe sleep. The NHS advises putting your baby to sleep on their back, feet to the foot of the cot, with no bumpers, pillows or soft toys in the cot, and no pillows or duvets for babies under 1. Don't sleep with your baby on the sofa.
• Fit smoke alarms on every floor and test them monthly. The NHS also recommends making and practising a family fire escape plan.
• Keep car seats and bouncing cradles on the floor, never on a table or worktop.
• Get bath time right from day one. Run the cold water first, then add hot, and check the temperature with your elbow. The NHS points out that babies can drown in as little as 5cm of water, and that it's often silent, so stay with your baby the whole time.
• Tie up blind and curtain cords now, before they're needed. The NHS advises keeping them secured and out of reach.

Rolling (roughly the first 6 months)

Rolling usually appears somewhere in the first six months, and it often catches parents out. The HSE notes that babies can fall as they start to roll over and move around for the first time.

• Change nappies on a mat on the floor, as the NHS suggests.
• Never leave your baby alone on a bed, sofa or changing table, even for a second. Both the NHS and HSE are clear on this.
• Use the harness every time. The HSE advises only using bouncers and seats with a 5-point harness, and never placing a bouncer on a raised surface.
• Put hot drinks down before you pick up your baby. The NHS notes a hot drink can still scald 15 minutes after it was made.

Sitting, reaching and grabbing (around 6 months)

NHS Healthier Together puts unsupported sitting at around 6 to 8 months. Once your baby can sit and reach, their hands go everywhere, and almost everything goes into their mouth.

• Clear small objects such as buttons, coins and small toy parts. The NHS advises avoiding toys meant for older children and magnetic toys with small pieces.
• Think about food size and texture as you start solids. The NHS warns that babies can choke on small, sticky or slippery foods, and advises against hard foods such as boiled sweets or whole nuts.
• Keep hot drinks, kettles and flexes back from the edge. The NHS recommends a cordless kettle or one with a short or curly flex.
• Move cords and flexes out of reach, including dressing gown cords, drawstring bags and the flexes of irons and hair straighteners.

Crawling (around 6 to 10 months)

The HSE says babies may crawl or shuffle on their bottom from as early as 6 months, while NHS Healthier Together puts crawling on all fours at around 8 to 9 months. Either way, your baby now has the run of the floor.

• Fit stair gates at the top and bottom of the stairs. The NHS recommends gates that meet BS EN 1930:2011, closed properly after use.
• Lock low cupboards. The NHS suggests storing cleaning products high up and fitting safety catches to low cupboards if needed. Magnetic cupboard locks that fit inside the door are one option, with no drilling (see magnetic vs adhesive strap locks).
• Keep laundry capsules and dishwasher tablets out of sight and reach. The NHS warns they can cause chemical burns.
• Take cot toys and bumpers out once your baby starts crawling, as the NHS notes they can be used to climb out.
• Don't use a baby walker. The HSE advises against them, as they raise the risk of head injuries and of reaching hazards like kettles and medicines.

What about socket covers? In the UK, you don't need them. RoSPA explains that 13-amp sockets made to BS 1363 already have a built-in shutter, so it does not consider it necessary to recommend socket covers. Instead, RoSPA advises storing electrical equipment away when not in use, supervising children and teaching them to keep away from sockets.

Pulling up and cruising (around 9 to 12 months)

Before walking, babies pull themselves up on furniture, and NHS Healthier Together puts cruising (walking while holding on) at around 10 to 11 months. Anything at standing height is now in reach.

• Secure free-standing furniture such as bookcases, chests of drawers and TVs to the wall or floor. The HSE advises against putting a TV on a chest of drawers, as children climb open drawers to reach it.
• Fit corner protectors to furniture with sharp corners, as the NHS suggests.
• Move low furniture away from windows so it can't be used as a step.
• Cook on the back rings and turn pan handles inwards. Some parents also add an oven door lock to help keep little hands off a hot oven door.

Walking and climbing (around 12 months and up)

NHS Healthier Together says most children walk by 15 months, within a range of about 12 to 15 months. The HSE notes children take more risks once they start walking, and that climbing is a big part of their development.

• Fit window restrictors. The HSE advises choosing ones you don't need tools to open, so you can still get out in a fire. Keep beds, cots and toy boxes away from windows. A restrictor isn't designed to take a child's weight leaning or climbing against it, so supervision still matters. Our window safety guide has more.
• Keep stair gates in place until your child is at least 2, as the NHS advises. The HSE adds that gates should come down once your child can climb over them.
• Consider door handle locks on rooms you'd rather your toddler didn't wander into on their own. Our door safety guide covers fingers, handles and fire doors.
• Stay with your child in the bath at all times, even with an older sibling there, and empty it straight after use. The NHS reminds parents a bath seat is not a safety device.
• Check the garden. The NHS advises fencing off, filling in or securely covering ponds, and emptying and storing paddling pools after use.

Two to four years

Toddlers and pre-schoolers can open things, climb higher and copy what they see adults do. The HSE points out that young children don't understand danger and can't manage their own safety yet.

• Lock medicines away. The NHS says medicines such as paracetamol and ibuprofen are the most common cause of poisoning admissions for under-5s, and advises keeping them locked away or high up. Child-resistant caps slow children down but aren't childproof.
• Keep button batteries well away from children. The NHS warns that swallowing them can cause severe internal burns. See our guide to hidden hazards at home.
• Start teaching safety. The HSE recommends teaching by example and, when your child is old enough, showing them how to climb stairs safely. The NHS notes children under about 4 may still need help on the stairs.
• Bunk beds can wait. The HSE advises that children shouldn't sleep on a top bunk until they are at least 6.

Keep checking as they grow

No home can be made completely risk-free, and nothing replaces watching your child. Baby-proofing works as a habit: get down on your knees every few months, look at each room from your child's height (our room-by-room checklist helps), and ask what they could reach, climb or open next. If someone else minds your child, the HSE suggests checking their home is child-proofed too.