Safety for babies, toddlers and young people

Babies learn by moving, reaching, rolling and putting things in their mouths.

At this age, safety is mostly about supervision and creating a safe environment.

Some key safety areas for babies

• Safe sleep: Follow Safe Sleep guidance for every sleep)
• Bath safety never leave baby, stay within arm’s reach
• Choking risks: Keep items such as nappy sacks, small toys, coins, blind cords, button batteries away from babies
• Burns and scalds: Keep hot drinks, radiators, kettles, iron cords out of reach
• Safe feeding: Never prop feed your baby and follow introducing solid foods safety advice(LINK TO WEANING PAGE)
• Tummy time safety: Always supervise
• Slings and carriers: Follow T.I.C.K.S. safety guidance (LINK TO SAFE SLEEP PAGE)
• Secure the home: Use stair gates, furniture fixed to walls, window locks
• Laundry capsules and cleaning products: Keep these locked away take action today

Toddlers explore the world through movement. Injuries often happen when they climb, reach, copy adults or put things in their mouths.

Some key safety areas for toddlers

• Falls: Stair gates, clear floors, secure furniture
• Water safety: Ponds, paddling pools, baths (never leave them)
• Choking: Cut grapes, tomatoes lengthways, avoid whole nuts
• Burns or scalds: Hot drinks, cooker fronts, irons, radiators
• Kitchen safety: Handles turned in, kettles placed back
• Blind cords: Always tied up out of reach
• Animal safety: Always supervise around pets
• Ingestion risks: Medicines, batteries, magnets, cleaning products locked away
• Play safety: Age‑appropriate toys, no small parts
• Suffocation risks: Nappy sacks, plastic bags, pillows, bean bags

Children start becoming more independent and spend more time playing away from adults.

Some key safety areas for school aged children

• Road safety: Stop, look, listen
• Scooters and bikes: Wear helmets
• Kitchen involvement: Safe supervised cooking
• Water safety: Swimming lessons, safe bathing
• Playground safety: Age‑appropriate equipment
• Online safety: Knowing trusted adults
• Home safety: Matches, lighters, radiators, chargers out of reach

Teens gain independence and may take more risks.

Some key safety areas for young people

• Online safety, screens and social media
• Travel safety: Buses, roads, cycling
• Fire safety: Cooking, candles, chargers
• Mental health and sleep routines
• Peer pressure: Decision‑making skills
• Being home alone: Safe boundaries

Different NHS services can support you and your child in different ways. Here is a simple guide to help you choose the best service for your child’s needs.

The West Yorkshire Healthier Together website also gives clear, simple advice which helps you decide when to care for your child at home, when to get advice, and when to get help straight away (For 0 to 5 year olds).

Pharmacy First: Minor illnesses and injuries

• Your local pharmacy can help with minor illnesses. You do not need a GP appointment.
• Visit your local pharmacy and ask for advice. The pharmacist will ask about symptoms and guide you to the best next step.
• Find your local pharmacy

GP practice

• Contact your GP practice for non‑urgent conditions.
• Find a GP practice

NHS 111

• If you’re unsure what to do, need urgent advice, or your GP practice is closed, call 111 or visit NHS 111 website
• NHS: When to use 111
• (Use the phone service for children under 5<.)

Walk‑in Centre (Shakespeare Medical Centre)

• Walk‑in centres are for urgent problems that don’t need A&E.
• Before attending, you should call NHS 111 or the centre for an initial assessment, and they will tell you when to come in.
• Call 0113 295 1132 (opening times: 8am to 8pm every day (including all bank holidays).
• To find out more visit Walk in Centres.

Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC)

• For urgent, non‑life‑threatening injuries and illnesses that need same‑day care.
• They are open every day from 8am to 11pm, including bank holidays.
• You can walk in without an appointment, but NHS Leeds recommends calling NHS 111 first so they can advise on the best place to go.
• For full details visit Urgent treatment centres

Emergency Department or Call 999

• BBC Tiny Happy People: Baby‑proofing your home Practical tips from a health visitor.

Leeds Safeguarding Children Partnership: Blind cord safety explains the serious risks posed by window blind cords and chains. It offers practical steps to keep children safe, including keeping cords out of reach, removing loops, moving furniture away from windows, securing cords with safety devices, and choosing cordless blinds where possible. The page also links to further guidance and translated safety videos.

The Child Accident Prevention Trust: Button battery safety explains why button batteries can be extremely dangerous if swallowed and how to keep children safe. Their page includes clear guidance on spotting the risks, storing batteries safely, choosing safer products, and what to do immediately if you think a child has swallowed a battery.

Good Egg Car Safety provides trusted, independent advice to help families choose, fit and use car seats safely from birth through to older childhood. Their website offers step‑by‑step fitting guides, checking tools, common mistakes to avoid, and expert videos to help keep babies and children safe when travelling in the car.

Choking Prevention (CAPT) provides practical, trusted advice on how to prevent choking in babies and young children. Their guidance explains which foods pose the greatest risk, how to cut food safely, what small household items to avoid, and key steps such as staying with children while they eat and encouraging them to sit still.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue (Safe and well visits): Free home‑safety visits offering personalised advice and smoke alarm checks.

NSPCC: Keeping children safe online provides clear, trusted advice to help parents and carers keep children safe online. Their guidance includes information on apps, games, parental controls, screen time, online bullying, grooming, sharing images, AI, harmful content, and how to talk to children about staying safe. They also share practical steps for setting up devices safely and supporting online wellbeing.

UK Safer Internet Centre: Parents and carers offers practical tips, guides and resources to help parents and carers keep children safe online. Their advice covers phones, tablets, laptops, smart speakers, consoles and social media, along with conversation starters, reporting guidance, screen‑time support and advice on online risks such as cyberbullying.

YoungMinds offers supportive, easy‑to‑understand guidance to help parents talk to their child about social media, online pressures and staying safe online.

NSPCC: PANTS (The underwear rule) helps parents teach children that their body belongs to them, and that they should speak up if anything makes them feel worried or unsafe. It offers simple, age‑appropriate messages to help children understand privacy, boundaries and consent, along with songs, videos and guides for parents and carers.

THINK: Road Safety Education Resources provides free road‑safety resources for all ages, including lesson plans, films, games and educator guides. Materials are grouped for ages 3 to 6, 7 to 12 and 13 to 16, making it easy to support children and young people to become safer and more aware when travelling near roads.

Our 0 to 19 Staying Safe: Domestic Abuse page explains how domestic abuse can affect babies, children, young people and parents, and where to get confidential help and support. It includes clear information on different types of abuse, how it can impact health and wellbeing, and details of local and national servicesyou can contact if you are worried about your safety or someone else’s.

The Lullaby Trust: Baby safety and safer sleep provides research‑based advice on safer sleep, reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), safe sleep products and sling safety.

• RoSPA: Accidents to children explains the most common causes of serious injuries in young children and how to prevent them. It includes clear information on falls, burns and scalds, poisoning, choking, suffocation, strangulation (including blind cords), drowning, glass injuries and kitchen hazards, as well as when and where accidents are most likely to happen.
• Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT): Child Safety Advice website offers practical, easy‑to‑follow safety advice on the main causes of accidents for babies, toddlers, children and young people, including burns, choking, poisoning, drowning, falls, suffocation and road safety. They also provide free downloadable resources, safety alerts, fact sheets and guides for parents, carers and professionals.
• WY Healthier Together: Toy safety advice on choosing safe toys and reducing choking risks.

• RoSPA’s: Accidents to children explains the most common causes of serious injuries in young children and how to prevent them. It includes clear information on falls, burns and scalds, poisoning, choking, suffocation, strangulation (including blind cords), drowning, glass injuries and kitchen hazards, as well as when and where accidents are most likely to happen.
• Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT): Child Safety Advice website offers practical, easy‑to‑follow safety advice on the main causes of accidents for babies, toddlers, children and young people, including burns, choking, poisoning, drowning, falls, suffocation and road safety. They also provide free downloadable resources, safety alerts, fact sheets and guides for parents, carers and professionals.