We work to improve children’s safety by contributing specialist advice to:

• Government – Child Accident Prevention Trust is a member of:
  • the Child Safety Reference Group, which advises the Department for Children, Schools and Families on the cross-government Public Service Agreement to improve children and young people’s safety
  • the Road Safety Advisory Panel, which advises the Department for Transport and monitors progress on the Child Road Safety Strategy
  • the Business and Community Safety Forum, which advises the Department for Communities and Local Government on fire safety.
• The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) – we are a Registered Stakeholder for the Public Health Guidance Programme and sit on the programme development group that is developing strategies, policies and national programmes to prevent unintentional injuries among children and young people aged under 15.
• Standards bodies such as the British Standards Institution (BSI) and ANEC. We sit on UK and European standards committees for child-resistant tops, child car seats, cigarette lighters, playground equipment and nursery goods.
• Other bodies such as the Play Safety Forum and RoSPA’s Home Safety and Safety Education Committees.

We also lobby key decision makers such as Government ministers, MPs and civil servants to make sure they put in place policies that are best for protecting children from accidents.

The main focus of our recent lobbying work is the prevention of serious bath water scalds. We have called on Government to review Building Regulations. The Scottish Government responded to our challenge and amended Building Regulations in Scotland. They became the first part of the UK to introduce this safety measure from May 2006.

“The very young and elderly people are particularly at risk from the effects of very hot water. There are simple precautions that everyone should take to prevent scalding, but we have listened to the concerns of individuals and organisations and decided we should act to help prevent these accidents”

Johann Lamont, former Deputy Communities Minister, Scottish Executive

Progress has been slower in England and Wales but a consultation on Building Regulations has now been launched. More about the review of Building Regulations… [link to News section]