We all want our homes to look fabulous, but they also have to be safe places. Whether you’re relaxing in the backyard at the end of a busy day or you’re inviting friends over for dinner, the last thing you want is to be worried about accidents and injuries. In this handy guide, I’ll outline some simple steps to make your home safer.
Identify Risks And Hazards
The best way to reduce the risk of accidents at home is to identify potential hazards and risk factors. If you’re not aware of issues, you can’t take action to nullify or eradicate them. Carrying out a risk assessment is a great idea. It’s particularly important to flag problems if you have children or pets. Be thorough. Go through each room in the house and make your way around external areas, noting down hazards. Once you have a list, you can work on finding solutions, doing repairs, or introducing safety devices, systems, and measures.
Prioritize Prevention Over Cure
Prevention is always better than cure when it comes to staying safe at home. There are many things you can do to eliminate accidents and incidents that could result in potentially serious injuries. Buying a pool cover is a brilliant example. If you have a swimming pool, you’ll enjoy endless hours of fun splashing around with your kids and friends and family members, but there are risks. Using a pool cover is an excellent way to keep everyone safe while also ensuring your pool stays clean.
Adding safety gates to your stairs is another great example of how to protect members of your family, particularly small children. Stairs are trip hazards. Using gates can help you prevent toddlers and babies from climbing up or coming down the stairs without your supervision and support. You can also make your home safer by adding locks to cupboards that contain dangerous chemicals and products, fencing off ponds and water features, ensuring your garden boundaries are secure, and using a fire guard. Your risk assessment will highlight hazards in your home. It’s important to use a customized list, as every home environment is different.
Keep On Top Of Home Maintenance
There are several benefits of keeping on top of home maintenance, including lower risks of property damage and reduced running costs, but nothing is more important than improved safety. From clearing gutters and finishing off DIY jobs to fixing loose roof tiles and keeping up to date with heating system checks, small tasks can make a big difference.
If you find it hard to stay on top of maintenance jobs, it’s worth exploring local companies and property maintenance services. Community social media groups are excellent resources for recommendations.
Our homes should always feel like safe places. Of course, we want our homes to look fantastic, but we also want to stay safe. Creating a safe home environment is crucial. Simple steps like carrying out risk assessments, flagging hazards and dangers, prioritizing prevention, and keeping on top of maintenance can make a huge difference.
Find me on social media, because it’ll be great to have you there and follow me 🙂 :