childalert - first for child safety and wellbeing

In the Home

-	One million children aged 14 and under go to Accident and Emergency every year following an injury in the home.
•	500,000 under the age of 4 are injured in the home every year.
•	Fire is the greatest cause of accidental death. 46% of fatal accidents to children are caused by fire.
•	Most non fatal accidents are caused by falls. 39% of all children’s accidents are from falling. 10 children die each year from falling through a window or off a balcony.
•	The largest number of accidents are caused in the lounge/living area with the most serious accidents caused in the kitchen.
•	50,000 children under the age of 14 go to A&E because of a burns or scalds.
•	30,000 children go to A&E with signs of poisoning – usually occurring from taking domestic cleaning substances.
•	35,000 children under the age of 4 fall down the stairs each year.
•	3000 injuries are caused by tripping over piles of laundry /toys left on the floor.
•	130,000 children are injured in the garden each year.
•	13% of fatal deaths are caused by drowning – this includes ponds in the garden. No child should be left unsupervised when playing or near to any water. It only take 3cm of water for a child to drown in.
•	The cost to the NHS of treating home accidents is estimated at £450 million per year. This does not include the lost of income or costs for pain, grief, or medical therapy.

On our Roads

•	107 children were killed and more than 5000 seriously injured by vehicles last year (2000) as they crossed the road.
•	191 children were killed in all road accidents.

In our Cars

•	2 million children face injury or death every year because their parents have not fitted their car safety seat correctly.
•	Experts say that a collision of just 5mph can kill an unrestrained child in a car.

On our Bikes

•	82% of children under 14 years do not wear bicycle helmets
•	60% of children under 14 years attend A&E departments due to bicycle related injuries, 43% with head injuries.
•	11-15 year olds are at the greatest risk of serious injury or death from not wearing or having a properly fitted bicycle helmet.
•	Wearing a bicycle helmet reduces head injury by 85%

Nutrition

•	Obesity is one of the fastest growing public health problems in the UK.
•	We need to teach our children food education – 42% of children in the UK go to school without breakfast and instead fill up on crisps and sweets on their way to school.
•	From a survey of 500 families - an average five stone 10 year old boy in the UK, eats his weight in chips every year.
•	By age 11 a third of British children are over weight and with boys one fifth of them show a concern for their health
•	One in 12 youngests refuse to eat any fruit at all; 65% of youngsters eat at least seven helpings of high fat snack foods every week.
•	Children should eat a mixture of fruit and vegetables which are low in fat and bring fibre, vitamins and minerals into the diet. The British Nutrition Foundation recommends that children eat at least five portions a day.

Sport

•	Accidents happen in sport all the time – here is a list of the major related sporting activities / types of injury that have taken children to Accident & Emergency Departments.

• Football – 49%
• Rugby – 10%
• Roller-blading or skateboarding – 3%
• Cricket – 3%
• Ice-skating – 2%
• Swimming – 2%
• Hockey – 2%
• Squash – 1%
• Tennis – 1%
• Open wound – 70%
• Breaks or fractures of the bones – 56%
• Bruises – 53%
• Injury to the tendon or joint – 32%
• Unconcious or concussion – 11%
• No injury – 13%

Childalert take no responsibility for the above statistics. They have been compiled from various sources including the DTI, CAPTS, Rospa, HASS and through media sources.

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