Families in County Durham are being urged by the Royal Society for the Prevention Accidents (RoSPA) to take action to protect their children from the risks of household cleaning products.
The latest phase of the Take Action Today, Put Them Away campaign, funded by Fairy is being launched on 6th September 2021.
This follows the scheme’s success in sixty areas of the UK including Birmingham, Liverpool, King’s Lynn, Nottingham, Newcastle, Bradford, Lincolnshire, Warwickshire, Northern Ireland and Hartlepool where 400,000 families have been aided in the prevention of poisonings and eye injuries.
In County Durham, accidental poisonings accounted for 205 emergency admissions for 0–4 year olds between 2017/18- 2019/20.
As part of the campaign, a handy magnetic notepad featuring key safety advice will be handed out to thousands of families by health visitors and children’s centre staff.
Ashley Martin, RoSPA’s public health adviser, said: “The notepad acts as a constant reminder in family kitchens to store cleaning products out of reach, out of sight and in a locked cupboard.
“Due to their inquisitive nature, children under the age of five are most at risk of accidentally swallowing or getting household cleaning products, like liquid laundry capsules, into their eyes. Even products with a child-resistant closure cannot guarantee safety – they only reduce the risk by delaying access to the product.”
Susan Duggan, Community Anchor for the Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust said: “Here at the County Durham 0-25 Family Health Service we are excited to be part of this important campaign. Our team deliver ‘The Healthy Child Programme’ focusing on early intervention and prevention for the children and families of County Durham and preventing accidents within the home is an important theme which runs through all of our home visits.
“We have seen the devastation that unsecured cleaning products can cause families when a young child accidently drinks them and we are committed to raising awareness and doing everything in our power to stop this from happening. We are keen to support families with any child and home safety concerns they may have and parents can contact our team on 03000 263 538 for advice.”
Take action today, put them away advice to parents includes:
• Store household cleaning products out of reach of children, preferably in a locked cupboard
• Always store chemicals in their original containers
• Never pierce or break laundry capsules or tablets
• Always close the lid of any product
• In the event of an incident, follow advice on the product pack and seek medical attention.
Further information on the Take Action Today campaign can be found at www.rospa.com.