Mike Derham, chairman of Mighton Products talks about forthcoming Child Safety Week, and how the Angel Ventlock system helps to dramatically reduce the number of accidents in the home involving young children, and open windows.
Children are curious, inquisitive, daring, and the light of our lives as parents. Their innocence beholds us to them, yet equally, brings myriads of potential danger. Playing with toys, eating their first meal, even napping in a car seat – these can all be fraught with challenge and concern. Our role as adults is to be their greatest protector, but what if we too can’t always imagine the hazards lurking within our homes?
The 3rd-9th June 2019 is Child Safety Week; an annual campaign which aims to highlight the areas of our lives and living spaces that children often approach with the least caution. Promoted by the Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT), the messages are all about raising awareness regarding the risks of child accidents, and how to stop them happening.
CAPT is the UK’s leading charity working to reduce the number of children and young people killed, disabled or seriously hurt in accidents. This year, the theme of their flagship campaign is Family life today: where’s the risk? Supported by a broad spectrum of household names, Mighton Products is proud to join them in their endeavour to bring child safety to the fore.
Approximately 4000 children are injured in incidents involving open windows each year, and tragically, 15-20 of these are fatal. Most families affected by these events have children under the age of four – a time when the excitement of exploring a new environment is all-too luring, and little hands and feet act faster than we sometimes realise. To imagine a child falling from a window at any height is truly, a parent’s very worst nightmare.
Thankfully, protective measures like the Angel Ventlock system can be fitted to help prevent such accidents, by limiting the window to opening just four inches or less. Its simple design is easily mounted to both new or existing sash units and unlike other similar devices, doesn’t require the use of a key to open the window fully in case of emergencies.
Mighton developed Angel Ventlock in response to a customer query about another Ventlock product at a Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) event in the United States.
US building codes exceed all requirements in the United Kingdom and Europe, something which prompted Mighton to work on the American Society for Testing & Materials (ASTM) Sub-Committee to develop new standards of safety. Since that time, hundreds of thousands of Angel Ventlock systems have been sold across the world, each recognised by the newly-introduced ASTM F2090-2008, 2010, 2013 and 2017 regulations.
Mighton, with other supporters of Child Safety Week, hope to remind parents that with every wonderful accomplishment small people make in their learning and development, come potential new hazards. Its plea is for it to continually assess the safety of their environments and respond accordingly.
More information about Child Safety Week topics can be found at www.capt.org.uk/child-safety-week, or by following #childsafetyweek on social media.
