Home Safety for Toddlers Aged 13 to 18 Months

Why review home safety at 13 to 18 months?

A toddler who is learning to walk can reach new places, pull up on furniture, and put objects in their mouth. A room that was safe for a younger baby may need changes.

Get down to your child’s eye level and look for climbable furniture, dangling cords, accessible chemicals, and small objects. Recheck as skills change.

How can furniture and televisions be made safer?

Anchor bookcases, dressers, and televisions to the wall using the manufacturer’s recommended hardware. A child can pull on furniture or climb a drawer.

Keep toys and tempting objects off high shelves and do not place heavy items where a child may pull them down.

Move furniture away from windows so it cannot be used as a step. Window screens do not prevent falls.

What should you check around stairs and windows?

Use properly fitted safety gates at stair access points and keep them closed. Follow the gate manufacturer’s installation instructions, especially at the top of stairs.

Use window locks or restrictors designed for your window. Keep cords from blinds and curtains secured well out of reach.

Do not rely on a screen or an adult’s brief absence to keep a toddler safe near an open window, balcony, or staircase.

How can kitchen and hot-surface risks be reduced?

Keep hot drinks, pans, kettles, irons, and hair tools away from edges and out of reach. Turn saucepan handles toward the back of the cooker.

Use the rear cooking rings when possible and keep your toddler outside the cooking area. Never carry a child while handling a hot drink.

Put hot tools away while they cool and keep cords from hanging where a child can pull them.

Where should medicines and cleaning products go?

Store medicines, laundry capsules, cleaning products, and chemicals locked away and in their original containers. A high shelf alone may not be enough once a child can climb.

Keep handbags and visitors’ medicines out of reach too. Child-resistant packaging is not childproof.

If you think your child has swallowed a medicine or chemical, contact poison control or local emergency medical services promptly and follow their instructions.

Why are button batteries, magnets, and small objects dangerous?

Button batteries can cause severe internal injury if swallowed. Keep spare batteries and battery-powered items secured, and check that compartments close firmly.

Small high-powered magnets can cause serious harm if more than one is swallowed. Keep them away from young children.

Store coins, beads, small toy parts, and other mouth-sized objects where your toddler cannot reach them. Choose toys designed for your child’s age and check for loose parts.

What about sockets, cables, and doors?

Keep electrical cords out of reach and unplug appliances when they are not in use. Replace damaged cords and keep chargers away from a child’s play area.

Use socket safety measures that meet local electrical guidance; avoid improvised covers or devices that could create a hazard.

Door finger guards or a doorstop can reduce trapped-finger injuries. Make sure safety devices do not block an emergency exit.

How should supervision and safety equipment work together?

Gates, locks, anchors, and guards make some hazards harder to reach, but no device makes a home completely childproof.

Stay close when your toddler is near stairs, cooking, windows, water, or other hazards. Ask every carer to follow the same safety routine.

Recheck equipment regularly for loose fittings, damage, or a child who has learned to climb around it.

What can you do today?

Anchor heavy furniture and televisions, and move climbable objects away from windows.

Lock away medicines, cleaners, button batteries, magnets, and small objects; secure blind cords and electrical cables.

Check stair gates, window locks, and hot-drink habits with everyone who cares for your child.

If a battery or magnet may have been swallowed, get urgent medical help even if your child appears well.