How to Baby-Proof Your Home: A Room-by-Room Checklist

Start before they’re mobile

Babies become mobile faster than most parents expect — rolling, then crawling, then pulling up. Aim to have the essentials in place by around six months, before your baby can get to them. The single best trick is to get down on your hands and knees in each room and look at the world from their height.

Every room

• Anchor furniture — bookcases, dressers, shelves and TVs must be strapped or bolted to the wall. Tip-overs are one of the most serious home hazards for small children.
• Cover electrical sockets and tuck away or secure trailing cords.
• Tie up blind and curtain cords well out of reach — looped cords are a strangulation risk.
• Add corner guards to sharp furniture edges.

Kitchen

• Lock cupboards containing cleaning products, and store all chemicals and medicines up high and out of sight.
• Use the back rings on the hob and turn pan handles inward.
• Fit an oven guard and keep hot drinks well away from edges.

Bathroom

• Never leave water in the bath or buckets, and always supervise bath time.
• Lock away medicines, razors and toiletries.
• Set your water heater so the tap water can’t scald.

Stairs and doors

• Fit safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs — a screw-fitted gate at the top, where a pressure gate isn’t safe.
• Use finger-pinch guards on doors and consider door-knob covers on rooms that are off-limits.

Living areas and fireplaces

• Fit a secure fireplace guard, and never leave a baby unattended near a fire or heater.
• Keep small objects — coins, button batteries, magnets, small toys — well out of reach, as they’re choking and swallowing hazards.
• Secure heavy or breakable items on low tables and shelves.

Keep re-checking

Baby-proofing isn’t a one-time job. As your child grows and learns to climb and open things, walk the house again every few months and stay a step ahead.