How do i make my house child friendly??

[bernie87]

Hi i am wanting to start a career in child minding and i would like to know how to make my house completely child friendly for health and safety reasons
Is their anywhere on the web i can find tips on how to achieve this?
Also is their a web site i can buy products that make my house Ofsted approved for being a registered child minder????
thanks for reading and please reply back with your answers x
thanks Bernie x :)

[beccas]

In my oppinion you would need saftey gates and fireguards
etc. Bets bet would be if you could contact a childminder in your area and ask if you can go and see them at their home to see what they have done, but if ofsted require you to have something more they will tell you on your first visit. Cupboard locks and plug socket covers are also advisable.

[suez]

hi the way i saw it is its commen sense ie plug socket covers ,stair gates ,cupboard door catches ,fire guard, safty glass film, fire blanket you can buy the majority of the things in your town such as wikinsons or the net the rest of it is knowing wat paper work you will need such as policies but you will be told wat you need from your icp course or i searched on the surestart site and it told me how to go about it n wat courses good luck x

[suez]

i think iv done it right have a look at this site http://www.childcarecareers.gov.uk/ x

[Pipsqueak]

Hi there,

you cannot totally child-proof your house, its not right and its not fair to the children as they do not learn responsible attitudes and its not fair on you and your family.

BUT in saying that you take all sensible and reasonable precautions and once you get into writing risk assessments they will help you in this. Remember RA sn' about eliminating risk.

Initially though, have a good think about what you might need - ie stairgates, highchairs, reins, plug sockets/cupboard catches (I actually don't use either), is all the low level glass in the house (inc coffee tables etc) toughned, are the toys suitable for age and stage, hygiene rotas, laminate floors and having non-slip mats and the list goes on.
So much of it depends on the age and ability of the child and you cannot predict the ability until you have the child. I have one 2yr old who is very steady on the stairs and requires very little help, the other 2yr old needs a lot of support for example.

A good tip is to get down on your hands and knees and see your home from a low level point of view.

[Tink]

Your house still needs to be your home at the end of the day. You just need to make sure it's safe with regards stairgates, cupboard locks, plug socket covers etc.

When I first started I considered the children I might have,
For a baby - I got on my knees and crawled around my house to see what dangers i could see at that level.
For a toddler - I walked around on my knees

It is surprising where you can get your fingers as a baby!!
Just something I did anyway.