Bedroom

Look around your bedroom and you'll soon see why you should always remember this golden rule - when there's a young child about, shut the bedroom door to keep them out!

• Unplug hairdryers, hair straighteners, curling tongs or heated rollers immediately after use and put them well out of reach in a safe place to cool.
• Never leave cosmetics, toiletries, pills or perfumes within reach as these can be highly poisonous to a young child.
• Check for trailing flexes from table lamps and other electrical equipment, hiding them away behind furniture wherever possible.
• Never fall asleep with a young child in your bed as you could roll over and crush or suffocate them.
• Place a protective guard in front of heaters and radiators.
• Wherever possible, move climbable furniture away from bedroom and landing windows which should always be kept closed or fitted with safety latches.
• Never leave a young child to play unsupervised in your bedroom.

Remember the golden rule - when there's a child about, shut the bedroom door to keep them out!

IMPORTANT NOTE: You can’t see it, hear it, smell it or taste it yet carbon monoxide poisoning due to poorly maintained heating systems accounts for over 20 deaths and around 200 serious incidents every year. So fit a carbon monoxide detector and make sure your heating system is professionally serviced at least once a year.

Never smoke near your baby. Second hand smoke can have a serious effect on vulnerable young children, causing breathing difficulties which may also increase the risk of cot death. Always take your smoking break outside if you can, but bear in mind that the fumes from stale smoke on clothes can be just as harmful. So if you've always wanted to give up smoking, what better time to quit than now? Your local GP surgery may run stop smoking clinics, but you might prefer to make a start by visiting smokefree.nhs.uk or by calling the free helpline on 0800 022 4 332.