Safety

• Get down on your hands and knees to look around from your baby's height. This helps you to check out the world as your baby sees it, and to notice any hazards.
• Do a home safety check. Check locks on windows, cover electrical sockets, put latches on cupboards, grills over fires and tuck all electrical cords safely out of the reach of little hands.
• Use stair gates at the top and bottom of stairs and block rooms you don't want your toddler to get into.
• Move all cleaning supplies from under the sink or anywhere at floor level to well above child height. Put child safety locks on cupboards.
• Lock up all drugs and medicines securely in a bathroom cabinet where they can't be reached.
• Never leave any pills lying around - to babies they're as tempting as sweets.
• If there's a chance your baby could reach the door catch, fit a bell to the front door so that there's a warning if your child tries to get out.
• As far as possible, move everything breakable or dangerous to above toddler reach. Make all tables and furniture with corners baby-proof. You can buy corner guards for the sharp edges, and sticky cellophane sheets to cover any glass you're worried about in tables or in doors.
• Check garden hazards - fences, ponds, ways for your baby to get out of the garden (such as breaks in the hedge), poisonous plants, sharp stones, and do all you can to make them safe.
• Lock away garden tools safely. Even very shallow ponds can be dangerous for your baby; the safest thing is to fill in your pond or water feature until your child is older.

Useful safety tips

• Use words you can repeat over and over until they actually mean something to your baby. By the time your baby reaches the toddler years, these messages - if used repetitively - should have sunk in.
• "Hot = burn" - show your baby the steam coming off your coffee or the washing up water, or put her hand near enough to feel a little warmth. Remember, never teach a baby about heat by putting them too near to the heat source.
• "Dangerous and sharp" - teach your baby that knives are dangerous. You could look at a knife and say "ouch", but do this with a serious face, not a smile.
• "Pills can make you very sick" - you should tell your child pills aren't sweets and are only for grown-ups.
• Your baby learns how to stay safe by copying you. When you do things with safety in mind, your baby will learn more quickly.
• Road safety - begin teaching your baby about road safety even when they're in the buggy or being carried by you. You can show her how you "look both ways" (say it as you do it); and let her know to "hold hands", "stay with mummy and daddy" or "stay close".
• Cutting tools - never run with sharp tools. Always carry them pointing down. Scissors, knives and garden clippers should be put out of reach after use. Use safety scissors whenever possible.
• Stairs - show your increasingly mobile baby how to come down a few stairs on your bottom.

More tips

• Keep watch - newly mobile babies need your constant supervision. Don't leave them in a room alone, take them with you to see who is at the door, or to answer the phone.
• Move unsafe objects - check out whether there's anything unsafe within your baby's reach such as poisons, cups of hot tea, sharp objects or heavy things they could pull down onto themselves.
• Be safe yourself - especially in the kitchen. Make sure saucepan handles point backwards so your baby can't reach them, and keep the cords from kettles and other electrical items out of reach.
• Be extra watchful when you're tired - accidents often happen when you're stressed, so keep safety at the front of your mind when you feel tired or tense. For information on keeping your baby safe during the night see our feature on Sleeping.