Tips For Making Your Backyard Safer For Your Children

Playing outdoors will likely be a memorable and rewarding part of your child’s spring and summer. Use these tips to make sure your child stays safe while having fun in their outdoor play area.

Establish backyard safety rules

Creating a set of rules for your children to follow while playing outdoors is a simple and effective way to help make sure they stay safe. Rules will differ depending on the size of your property, what you have in your yard and other factors. For this reason, it is important to come up with your own personalized set of rules that match the different features of your property.

Examples of rules may include:

●       Do not play in the street

●       Do not leave the property or go beyond certain boundaries

●       Do not play outdoors without an adult’s permission or supervision

●       Stay away from bodies of water

●       Do not climb on tall trees or structures

Store gardening and lawn care tools out of reach

Shovels, hatchets, pruning shears and other lawn care tools are essential when it comes to keeping your yard looking its best. However, if they are left out, these tools can easily become potential hazards for both adults and children alike. Sheds, garages and basements are often safe areas to lock away any sharp or potentially dangerous tools. Keeping tools out of your childrens’ reach is an essential step in making your yard safer.

Inspect your yard for poisonous plants

No matter where you live, it is possible that your backyard is home to potentially poisonous or otherwise dangerous plants. Wild berry bushes and other visually appealing plants may look enticing to children who do not know the difference between a safe plant and a harmful one. Because of this, it is important that you remove these plants from your yard before you allow your children to play in it. You may also opt to let your children know why you are removing these plants and to teach them about the dangers of touching or consuming certain flora. Add this to your annual landscaping routine to help make your lawn safer.

Build a fence

Putting a fence around the perimeter of your property is a great way to create a safe outdoor play area for your children. It is much easier to supervise your children and to monitor who or what enters and leaves your property when it is fenced in.

Close off swimming pools and trampolines

The misuse of swimming pools and trampolines is to blame for many outdoor accidents that involve both children and adults. In fact, according to the Center for Disease Control, swimming pool-related accidents are the number one cause of death among children ages one to four years old. Trampoline accidents are the cause of over one hundred thousand injuries annually. In many cases, these accidents could have been prevented by taking the recommended safety precautions. For swimming pools, fences and alarms should be installed. For trampolines, proper padding, safety nets and adult supervision are recommended.

Have an emergency plan in place

Although we do not like to think of them, accidents can occur on anyone’s property. It is important to plan out emergency procedures in the event that something goes wrong. Walk yourself through some potential emergency scenarios and decide what the best course of action would be to minimize negative impacts of the accident. It also may be a good idea to invest in a first aid kit. This should help to make sure you have some basic materials that could help you to sanitize and take care of minor injuries.