How safe are your blinds?

Many articles and websites have sprung up about child safety issues regarding blind cord loops. While Effigy Blinds supports any measures taken to protect children from areas of danger from whichever quarter they come, there is a wide gap between useful words and panic driven knee jerk reactions.
This lens will, I hope give you food for thought and accurate and clear information so you can ensure your child or children do not end up as another statistic.
The United States has banned the manufacture of mini blinds but not their import and although importers have had to recall large numbers of these blinds for adaptation or just to destroy them, there are still a lot of these in US homes. There are also a considerable number of woven wood or bamboo roll up type blinds which have cord loops which are considerably more dangerous than mini blind cords due to the construction of this type of blind.
So far in Britain there is no legislation against the manufacture or sale of these or any other blind with looped or free hanging cords and currently there are only guidelines for manufacturers and resellers to educate buyers about the dangers and ways they can be minimised.

The British Blind and Shutter Association, the trade association for makers, sellers and installers of interior and exterior blinds, awnings, security grilles and shutters and associated motor and control systems, has links with RoSPA, the Child Accident Prevention Trust and Trading Standards to ensure a coordinated approach to promoting appropriate safety messages. The BBSA is also on contact with it's counterparts across Europe and in North America and Canada.
So for the trade there is a wealth of accurate and appropriate guidance which can be passed on to the end user, and although much of it is contained in leaflets, where to obtain copies of these is not so obvious. Anyone who has internet access and is interested in researching this can find all of this and much more doubtful advice but those who do not have the experience or the drive to fully utilise the internet may miss the more relevant and important points.

Here are some of the ways in which different types of blinds can be made safely :

# Vertical blind with mono command - solid plastic wand is turned to twist louvres for shading variance and is used to draw back the blind for clear viewing through the glass. Louvres for these can also have sewn in weights thereby avoiding link chain cords as well
# Tensioned blind - pleated (most often used in conservatory roofs) and corded Venetian (mini blind) either can be made within a Perfect Fit® frame
# Spring driven roller blind
# Gear operated blinds - this is more usual for larger blinds and awnings
# Bell toggles for side chain operated blinds (rollers & Romans )
# Panel blinds - wand operated
# Motorised blinds

Here are some of the adaptations which can be used to make blinds safer with the continuing dangers highlighted:
# Button type pleated blinds - using tensioned spring in figure of eight style but still has exposed cords although under tension.
# Chain break connector - chain parts under pressure which if in the wrong direction can be quite high to part the chain
# P clips and cord/chain tidy (chains and cords are kept against a wall or window so minimising the danger from loops
# Breakaway tassle for woodweave, wood Venetian and aluminium Venetian blinds - these are better than single cords which always twist together and form a loop.
# The Uniwand for mini blinds - the cords are in the middle of the twist rod and can be tidied onto a cleat which is part of the rod - still has looping on the cleat
# Cleat for cord tidy works only if located high enough so cannot be reached by children - still has looping on the cleat

I hope the accompanying pictures and diagrams are clear enough to allow you to determine how you can make your blinds as safe as possible. Any of the retro fit safety items can be purchased from your local blind supplier or via any of the online sellers either independently operated or on an auction site such as eBay. If you have a nearby shop selling blinds and curtains ask them for these items, they should be able to supply them from stock or order them in for you.
If you don't feel confident in fitting any safety kit yourself ring the nearest supplier and ask them to recommend a blind or curtain fitter who should be familiar with what is needed and can do the work for you.
Don't take risks with your child's safety. Check out your home today and take action now!