Note: The safety recommendations in this document regarding window cord hazards have been
superceded by more recent advice. See Children Can Strangle in Window Covering Cords -- html or pdf

• Screen reading: "CPSC is urging parents and child care providers to use this checklist to make sure their child care facility is as safe as possible."
• Screen reading: "Eliminate all drawstrings on children's clothing as they can catch on play equipment and strangle the child. 38% of child care settings had children wearing clothing with drawstrings at the neck. Since 1995, CPSC has received reports of at least 22 deaths and 47 non-fatal incidents involving drawstrings on clothing."
• View of clothing with drawstrings.
• Close-up of article of clothing with drawstring.
• Person taking garment off rack and pulling out drawstring.
• Child and adult coming out of house and sitting on steps.
• Close-up of adult taking drawstring out of child's coat. Child gets up and walks away.
  
  
• Screen reading: "Blind cords should not have a loop where children can strangle. 26% of child care settings had loops on window blind cords. About one child a month strangles in window covering cords. Many strangulations occur in the loop of the cords. CPSC recommends that you cut the loops on old blinds and put a separate tassel on each cord."
• View of children sitting around a table and two adults are with them.
• View of two windows and two children close by.
• Close-up of cord.
• Adult next to a window cutting the looped cord.
• Close-up of person making a smaller loop.
• View of repaired cord.
• Person showing repaired cord.
• View of part of blind with cord.
• View of blind cord moving up in slow motion.
  
  
• Screen reading: "Make sure all playground surfaces consist of at least 12-inches of either wood chips, mulch, sand or pea gravel. Mats of safety-tested rubber or rubber-like materials are also considered safe. 24% of the child care settings did not have safe playground surfaces. There are about 90,000 playground related injuries to children under 6 every year. About 15 children die each year from playground-related injuries."
• Two children playing on swings.
• Far view of playground.
• Three children swing on bars, one falls.
• Child climbing down, falls.
• View of wood chips.
• Far view of yellow slide.
• Ruler being put into the wood chips.
• Far view of another slide.
• View of sand.
• View of mulch.
• View of rubber mat.
• Children playing on a seesaw.
• Far view of children playing.
  
  
• Screen reading: "There should be no soft bedding in cribs where babies sleep. 19% of child care settings had cribs containing soft bedding. Each year as many as 900 babies whose deaths are attributed to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) may have suffocated on soft bedding such as pillows or comforters."
• Two adults in a room. The woman has a baby in her arms. The man takes the soft bedding out of the crib and walks out of the room. The woman then puts the baby in the crib and walks away.
• View of fluffy yellow pillows.
• View of a piece of a white comforter.
• View of the entire comforter.
• View of comforter and pillows.
• View of a baby being put in a crib without any soft bedding.
• View of baby being covered with a blanket.
  
  
• Screen reading: "Make sure all staircases have safety gates to prevent small children from falling. 13% of the child care settings did not use child safety gates where necessary. In 1997 alone, 100,000 children under 5 went to hospital emergency rooms with stair-related injuries."
• View of a staircase with a safe gate at the top. Children are standing at the safety gate.
• Close-up of children standing at safety gate.
• Close-up view of children standing at the gate looking down the stairs.
  
  
• Screen reading: "Make sure cribs meet current safety standards. 8% of child care settings had cribs that did not meet safety standards. About 50 babies each year die in incidents involving old cribs. The distance between the cribs slats should be no more than 2 and 3/8 inches. There should be no significant space between the crib and the mattress, and no catchpoints where clothing can become entangled."
• View of a crib.
• Close-up of someone putting something through one of the crib slats.
• View of several cribs and a rocking chair.
• Close-up view of a crib.
• View of slats being measured with a 12-inch ruler.
• View of someone checking the spacing between the crib and the mattress.
• Close-up of spacing being checked.
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• Screen reading: "Check to make sure there are no recalled products being used. 5% of child care settings were using products previously recalled by CPSC. CPSC is aware of at least 3 deaths involving previously recalled products in a child care setting. Make sure your facility regularly checks with CPSC for recall information."
  
  
• End