If you find yourself wondering how to make your garden safe for children, you’re not alone. There’s nothing more wonderful than seeing the children or grandchildren enjoying themselves in the garden.
Unfortunately, accidents do happen. 125,000 children are harmed in garden-related accidents every year, meaning that even in an environment of relative safety you can never be too careful.
Before you let the little ones out to play, ensure you follow our 5 simple steps. You’ll be able to relax, they’ll be able to play, and nobody will get hurt.
How to make your garden safe for children
1. Secures gates and fences
Children are naturally curious and can achieve a lot in the short space of time it takes you to make a cup of tea. If your garden is hedged, make sure all gaps are sealed, especially if you live near a road.
- If your hedge doesn’t touch the ground, the simple application of chicken wire or a low level trellis will seal off any areas.
- Similarly, lock your gate and check that walls are secure. The gate latch is self-explanatory, but older walls can crumble away or have loose bricks sitting high.
2. Protect against trips and falls
If you have climbing equipment, swings, slides, or any type of garden toy requiring assembly, ensure it’s put together according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Never lean these items against walls, fences, or large bushes.
- Invest in a play surface to reduce the risk of dangerous slips, trips, and falls.
- Ensure paving is replaced as soon as cracks appear, and regularly check paving stones to make sure they haven’t come loose.
- Finally, consider replacing gravel with a solid surface. Smaller children can choke on gravel or think it fun to insert it in their ears and nose. Older children will throw gravel around, resulting in injury.
3. Put the tools away
Children love to imitate adults. This makes stray power tools dangerous play toys.
- Ensure any power tools are unplugged and put away on a high shelf in the shed.
- The same applies to gardening tools such as trowels, secateurs, or even rakes. If small children get their hands on these it won’t take much to turn an innocent game into a race to hospital.
- Put everything out of reach, explain to the children that they can’t touch them, and encourage the children to play with their own toys.
4. Be water smart
It seems obvious to say that swimming pools should be fenced and gates should be latched at all times, but there are a host of other water-related hazards that can prove too tempting for little ones.
- Ponds may make a beautiful feature but erect a fence or cover them with netting.
- If you’re not particularly attached to having a pond on your property, turn it into a sandpit and replace it with a birdbath or similar water feature.
- Even leaving an empty paddling pool outside can be dangerous. Britain isn’t adverse to a summer shower and there have been cases of incidents involving paddling pools filled with rainwater.
5. Mind the barbecue
Nothing is better than a summer barbecue with friends and family, but these present a number of risks.
- It should go without saying that barbecues get hot and children should play as far away from them as possible. However, barbecue cutlery such as knives, forks, and tongs can also become hazardous in the wrong hands.
- Use plastic glasses and paper plates where necessary. If you’re using outdoor heating once your barbecue is over, keep children away from it.
When asking yourself how to make your garden safe for children, it really doesn’t take much. Get into the habit of securing your garden and enjoy an injury-free summer!