Families across Liverpool have been targeted by The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), in a pioneering campaign to protect children from the risks of household cleaning products.
The scheme has been launched after alarming figures showing there were 43 children under five seen in Alder Hey Children’s Hospital’s A&E over two years from 2010-12, as a result of ingesting household cleaning products, according to the RoSPA.
A magnetic notepad holding key safety advice to prevent accidental poisoning will be distributed to 20,000 families with toddlers across the city, in this pilot scheme.
As well as the notepad, a factsheet containing all the information necessary to support the delivery of the programme in each area of Liverpool will be distributed, and a simple, effective assessment tool for use in and around the home.
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, children’s centres and nurseries will be distributing the resources, as part of the “Take Action Today, Put Them Away” educational campaign, funded by the industry’s trade body, the UK Cleaning Products Industry Association (UKCPI).
Children under the age of five are run the risk of swallowing or getting cleaning products in their eyes, due to their inquisitive nature. Parents and carers are being encouraged to store cleaning products out of reach, and preferably locked away, as even child resistant closures may only delay access to containers.
Sheila Merrill, RoSPA’s public health adviser, said: “It doesn’t take long for tiny hands to get hold of a household cleaning product if they are not stored safely.
“Cleaning products are often kept under the sink or by the toilet, but we want parents to recognise the risk this can pose to their children. Child-resistant containers will simply slow down a child’s access to the contents, so it is vitally important that parents and carers take simple steps of putting household products out of reach and out of sight in order to prevent unnecessary accidents.”