As children grow so does their curiosity with the world around them. Basic household items, including window coverings, can turn into potential hazards. In early 2014 all blind and window covering suppliers were committed to adhering to the European EN 13120 standard as a minimum safety requirement.

Blind Inspiration has been practicing this standard from early 2013 and together with the child safe video on this page we hope we can give you information that may help when it comes to purchasing a blind for your home.

The first thing to remember is there are many products that we supply that do not require safety devices as they are safe by design. This means they do not have control cord or chains visible they are concealed within the blind. There are also a range of tensioned blinds which again do not have any looped cord to worry about. Typically this type of blind is pulled or pushed into position when operated.

Motorised products also remove the need for operating cord as do Plantation Shutters. We have videos on this website of all these products so for safe by design products take a look at the following videos Duette, Snugfit and Plantation Shutters. Regarding all other types of blinds such as Roller, Vertical, Venetian, Roman and Wood, these are all fitted with child safety devices that are fitted to a side wall and keep any chain or cord loop restrained. There are also various breakaway links on chain and cord controls.

These are designed to separate if a child became entangled in the loop. All cord loops on blinds are potentially a risk if these safety features are not adhered to. The rule now is that all blind cord should be no less than 1500mm from floor and when the blind is raised and the cord gets longer the cord needs to be wrapped around a cleat which will be fitted with the blind. On any visit, we will access the dangers and deal with them by complying totally with the current standards.

If you have existing blinds that do not comply with current regulations you can do the following to help make the area safe.

• Move beds, cots and highchairs away from any window coverings
• Do not tie cord or chain together to form a loop
• Move any furniture/ beds that may be by the window to stop little ones climbing up
• Keep all blind cords and chains out of reach of young children
• Retro fit cord cleats and restraint devices
• If you see a looped cord at a low level or laying on the floor tie it up out of the way