A parents guide to purchasing safe furniture for baby

By: Gary Clay

Having your first child is an amazing and at times, daunting prospect as you realize how much there is to organise. You want your child's bedroom and the nursery furniture to be better than a fairy tale dream, but it is vital to think about you and your newborn's comfort and wellbeing above all else. So when creating that new nursery take time to ponder the following guidanceadvice.

Make sure to install a working smoke detector in your child's room or outside the room. When your child starts to wander it's important that any spare electrical socket is covered with a cheap plastic plug protector to stop your inquisitive child from inserting his fingers. Wherever possible, attempt to hide electrical cords and sockets with nursery furniture your toddler doesn’t use, like wardrobes.

Your baby’s cot is the piece of nursery furniture where she will spend the most time during her initial months. When choosing a cot it's essential to make sure they conform with the all important safety rules (BS EN 716 in the UK). Check the cot is deep enough to stop your baby from climbing out as they grow. Ensure that the spacing between the bars is not capable of allowing the baby to trap their head. Make sure that if the cot has drop down sides that they have proper locks to stop them from being accidently released by your child. If you have a second hand cot ALWAYS buy a brand new mattress for each child. Your mattress must leave a gap of not more than 4cm around the outside of the cot to stop your child from becoming trapped.

Remember to place your newborn down to sleep on her back to reduce the risks of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome(SIDS) and refrain from using cushions or overly fluffy bedding in the cot. If using a nightlight make sure it is located away from the cot and any other fabrics

When creating your nursery plan make certain no furniture is located close to windows, as your child grows they may attempt to climb up and have a look out. Never place low nursery furniture your youngster one may use to climb on or furniture like cots or changing tables in front of windows to stop him from perhaps falling out. Keep the windows in the nursery properly secured. If you have to open a window to create ventilation make sure the window is secured and never open more than 5cm, there are products on the market that stop windows from being opened any more than this.

Changing tables may also be a source of injury but this more often than not is a consequence of parents believing their toddler to be protected and walking away. Using a u - shaped changing mat can help enormously in ensuring your baby can't roll away and some changing stations even have straps to fix your child. Changing equipment must be kept beyond the child’s reach in a drawer of on a shelf. Babies and toddlers are naturally inquisitive and nappy sacks or rash creams are potentially dangerous.

Rather worryingly one of the most common causes of harm in a baby’s room are curtains and blinds. Avoid using long curtains or drapes that may trap and choke a small baby and don’t hang blinds with lengthy cords in your baby’s rrom. If you do install blinds, make sure you tuck the strings out of the way high above your child’s reach and never place nursery furniture your baby occupies, like her cot or the changing table, near the blinds.

Choose your toy storage carefully. Look for toyboxes that have no lid or have very lightweight or child friendly hinged lids. As your child gets bigger, she may climb inside the toybox and a heavy lid may trap her so it’s important they be fitted with safety hinges or lightweight lids. Storage drawers are also potentially harmful and ideally should have a soft close action. Doors also present a threat to tiny digits and all doors must be fitted with child safe catches to stop small digits from becoming damaged

By following simple guidance and following common sense, new parents can make sure they select the correct choices when selecting nursery furniture and create the perfect nursery for their newborn.

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Being an authority on parenting issues Gary writes for a selection of printed and web press and is particularly knowledgeable about nursery bedroom furniture.With years of experience advising customers about selecting nursery furniture he is able to give sound assistance on all manner of purchases from baby's first cot to what to look for when purchasing a memory foam changing mat.

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