Most falls aren’t serious. Children naturally fall as they learn and grow. But serious falls are one of the most devastating accidents a child can have.
A child may need to learn to walk again after falling from a height onto concrete. While a serious head injury can lead to memory loss, learning problems and even personality changes.
Discover the most common causes of serious falls and learn how you can protect children, while still giving them space to grow.
How many children have serious falls?
Every day more than 40 children under 10 are admitted to hospital because they’ve had a fall. Over 30 children under 18 sadly died from a fall between 2019 and 2022.
Doctors see a worrying number of:
- babies who have fallen off changing tables or beds
- crawlers who fall down stairs
- toddlers who have fallen out of high chairs
- little children who have fallen from windows or balconies
- older children who have fallen from bikes or buildings
Why are children at greater risk?
Young children’s heads are heavier than their bodies, which makes them top-heavy. So they can very easily overbalance and fall. And when they land, their head takes much of the impact
They’re also changing rapidly. Suddenly they’re rolling, on the move or climbing when the day before they weren’t. This often takes busy parents by surprise.
While older children are testing what they can do, whether that’s how fast they can ride their bike or how high they can climb.
Cots, changing tables and raised surfaces
Even the smallest baby can wriggle their way to the edge of a bed or changing table, then roll off. A baby bouncer can fall off a raised surface as the baby moves and bounces.
- If you can, change your baby’s nappy on the floor
- If you need to use a changing table, stay beside your baby all the time
- Put bouncy chairs and car seats on the floor, not a raised surface
- As soon as your baby can stand, remove any large toys they might climb on to get out of their cot
- Children can have serious falls from the tops of bunk beds. That’s why we don’t recommend the top bunk for children under six. Teach children not to play on the top bunk.
Falling down stairs
- Even before they’re mobile, babies are injured when the person carrying them falls. Carrying a baby shifts your centre of gravity. So take care to hold on on the stairs and watch your footing, especially if stairs are narrow or steep. Remind older family members, as balance tends to decline with age
- As soon as your baby starts moving around, fit safety gates to stop them climbing or falling down the stairs
- You may prefer to fit a safety gate across the landing or baby’s bedroom rather than the top of the stairs. This can help avoid falls for parents or older children
- Start teaching your toddler how to climb and come down stairs safely but don’t let them do this alone.
Highchairs
It’s easy to be caught by surprise when your child first pushes themselves up out of their highchair. And often the highchair is in the kitchen, on a hard floor.
- Get into the habit of strapping your child into their highchair every time
- If you’re worried about getting your child out if they start choking, remember you can still release them quickly from the straps.
Falls from windows or balconies
Young children are naturally curious and want to see what’s out the window but have no real sense of danger.
- Keep low furniture away from windows, especially in children’s bedrooms, so they can’t climb up and fall out – even on the ground floor
- If you can, install window restrictors (to limit how far they can open) and locks
- If you opt for a lock, keep the keys somewhere you can find them in case there’s a fire and you need to get out
- If your window won’t lock or you need to open the window wider because of heat or cooking, and you also need to leave the room, take your young child with you
- Keep young children away from balconies unless they are supervised and keep balcony doors locked when not in use.
Trampolines
Most trampoline accidents happen when there are two or more bouncers at the same time.
The biggest risk is when they have very different weights. And it’s usually the little one who gets hurt.
The weight from bigger users can throw a little child dangerously high in the air, or even off the trampoline or bouncy castle.
- Let children take it in turns
- Avoid adults or bigger children and smaller children jumping together
- Use a net so children can’t be thrown onto the ground
- Teach children the trampoline rules to take turns and close the zip on the net.
Bikes, scooters and skateboards
Children going over the handlebars of their bikes is relatively common. But it can sometimes lead to serious injuries.
- Encourage your child to wear a helmet every time they go out on their bike, scooter or skateboard to protect their head
- As your child grows, adjust the handlebars to improve their control of the bike and reduce the risk of accidents
- If they experience a handlebar injury, especially with abdominal pain, vomiting or a circular imprint on their belly, seek medical attention straight away.
