One in ten fathers don't make homes child-safe

AROUND one in ten fathers fail to implement changes around the homes to protect youngsters from preventable accidents, it was claimed today.

A survey by the Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) found that 88 per cent of fathers with children under the age of five take active steps to prevent accidents, but the remainder do nothing.

Work still needs to be done to overcome a tendency in some fathers to see the odd injury as "inevitable", the charity said.

But two-thirds of the fathers who do take steps to improve safety in the house said their approach was "thorough".

It found that 55 per cent had fitted safety gates on stairs and smoke alarms in their homes.

More than half said they were always present when young children were in the bath, with 47 per cent testing the water and running cold water before hot.

Commenting on the findings, Katrina Phillips, chief executive of CAPT, said: "Bumps and scrapes are inevitable, but it is serious accidents we need to prevent.

"In 2007 we ran a similar survey which found that new fathers needed to brush up on child safety.

"So it's great news that in just three years so many modern dads are now active accident busters."

The CAPT has teamed up with online forum Dadtalk.co.uk to provide a service for fathers who want to be better informed about safety.

Agony aunt Denise Robertson said: "Today, access to information is far greater than 30 years ago when I had my own children, and I would give the same advice to both mums and dads.

"Use your common sense and consult the trusted sources of information which are there for you. There may be some hazards and risks you might not have considered and which can be prevented."