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28th January 2021
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Apollo continues to drive safety message home
As one of the UK's largest retailers of made-to-measure blinds and shutters, Apollo Blinds is at the forefront of the industry's efforts to raise awareness of dangers relating to looped blind cords and is launching a campaign to drive the message home.
Now in its third year, Apollo's Make Blinds Child Safe campaign, runs during the Child Accident and Prevention Trust's Child Safety Week, 18th -24th June 2012 and asks parents to check their blinds and assess whether they need to fit a safety device.
The current European standard (EN13120) from the European Committee for Standardisation relating to looped blind cords states that safety devices must be supplied. It states: "Complete elimination of the strangulation risk can only be achieved by keeping cords, chains, and tapes and similar out of the reach of children. Use of additional safety devices may reduce the risk of strangulation but cannot be considered foolproof. Motorisation eliminates the risk associated with looped and pull-cord operating mechanisms but the risk relating to inner tapes and cords (for relevant products) remains. Persons in charge of children are ultimately responsible for following the safety instructions provided by the manufacturer."
All products supplied and fitted by Apollo Blinds, with the exception of its cordless blinds, come with child safety devices as standard to ensure they're installed and operated safely. ITV's Daybreak recently featured Apollo as the retailer leading the way in child safe blinds and safety devices
According to a survey by Apollo and research firm MumPanel, 82% of parents in the UK are now aware of the dangers of looped blind cords, YET nearly three quarters (74.4%) are still not aware that fitting safety devices could prevent fatal accidents, such as child strangulation. Already, 11 toddlers have died from strangulation since the beginning of 2010 after falling and becoming entangled in unsecured blind cords.
All Apollo products are fitted with child safe devices - from P-clips and cleats through to control-guards and wand controls that keep blind cords secured against a wall or encased; but there are still millions of looped blind cords in UK homes that pose a potential threat to children's safety which could be made safe, and Apollo retailers throughout the UK campaign tirelessly to get this important safety message across to parents.
Here are Apollo's top 10 tips and products available to ensure blinds are safe:
1. Use a P-Clip neatly screwed to the wall to keep looped cords from hanging loose (available free from Apollo Blinds and can be fitted to old blinds)
2. Tie cords back with child safe Cleats (available free from Apollo Blinds and can be fitted to old blinds)
3. Fit cordless (Intu) blind systems that are available for pleated, venetian and roller blinds, and great for any room in any house. Intu systems are available as a retro-fit option as well as part of new blind order.
4. Push and Pull operating systems (available on new pre-tensioned pleated blinds) are another great option as the cords are attached to the window sill and the blind is lowered and raised with a discrete handle - making it fun to operate!
5. Wand Controls (available on new blinds only) have no chain at all. What's even better that this product is it's 10% cheaper than standard vertical blind fittings!
6. Uni-wands for venetian blinds combines tilting, raising and lowering into one control that wraps around the cleat attached to the wand, eliminating free-hanging cords. Available on new venetian blinds it costs just an additional £7.
7. Control-guard is a low-cost solution for increased child safety at just £9. It can be fitted to roller, roman and vertical blinds already fitted in the home (or as an option with new blinds) and secures chains against the wall.
8. Powershade (remote controlled automated) vertical blinds make opening and closing blinds child's play! Powershade systems cost around £250 (plus blinds)
9. Motorised roller blinds are another cordless option using a Somfy reote controlled operating system to raise and lower blinds at a touch of a button. The remote control system costs around £200 (plus blinds).
10. Shift to shutters. As well as being child safe, you will tick the home style box too!
Made-to-measure shutters to suit all shapes and size of windows and doors are available from Apollo.
Finally, whatever you do, don't have a loop and if you're not sure then call Apollo Blinds who will advise parents, grandparents or carers on how to make blinds child safe.
Watch the British Blinds and Shutters Association (BBSA) Make it Safe video:
To download a fact sheet with instructions on how to fit a cleat hook, go to:
www.rospa.com
For advice from CAPT visit:
T: 0800 915 3991
W: www.apollo-blinds.co.uk
18th May 2012