Halloween Kids Safety
Halloween is great fun for children and parents alike but it's even better if you take precautions to ensure your child's safety.
Here are a few simple tips which will help ensure that it doesn't become scary for real.
Fright night?
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Very young children should only go out if accompanied by a responsible adult.
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Get together with other parents who live nearby and organise a safe circuit of friends' houses for slightly older kids to visit. At each house, the resident adult can make a swift head-count to make sure no child has strayed away from the group, and parents can keep in touch by phone so you know where your children are at all times.
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If children are old enough to go out without supervision, make sure they go in a group and stick together.
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Spiteful tricks are unacceptable. In the run-up to Halloween, discuss the difference between amusing tricks to play on friends and cruel and/or dangerous tricks.
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Children should never play a 'trick' on a stranger and should never damage property with stones or eggs.
Before they go...
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Parents should make sure their children eat a proper meal before going out.
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Children going out should carry a torch.
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Make sure your kids have money to phone home. Better still, if they have a mobile phone, they should take it with them and call or text at a pre-arranged time. If in any doubt about their welfare or whereabouts, call or text them.
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Make sure they are wearing a watch, preferably one that can be read in the dark. Know exactly where your children are going and when they are due back... and make sure they know it too.
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Be careful with costumes. Make sure they are flame-resistant.
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Explain the importance of sticking to familiar areas and not straying into areas they don't know. Remind your children not to cut across driveways or gardens.
Out and about
Kids should only approach houses where you know the occupants and which are lit up.
Road-sense is important. Tell your children to walk to where they're going - there's no need to run. They should stay on the pavement if they can or walk on the RIGHT hand-side FACING the traffic if there's no pavement. Children should remember to follow the green cross code at traffic lights.
Make sure your child's costume doesn't drag on the ground. Tell them to take their mask off between houses. Wearing bright clothing or incorporating reflective markings or tape into the costume will make them more visible to motorists.
Children shouldn't go near or try to stroke animals they don't know.
Tell them to bring sweets back home before eating them. Anything that looks dirty or dodgy in any way should be discarded.
Information extracted from www.raisingkids.co.uk|