If parental anecdotes are anything to go by, neighbourhoods of yesteryear were a safe-haven where children could wander freely and parents could relax knowing the worst that could possibly happen would be a cut finger or bruised knee.

Whilst the tellers of such tales may be just a little guilty of over-romanticising bygone eras, it is probably still fair to say that times have indeed changed. Many parents these days seem intent on wrapping their children in cotton wool from a young age and are too scared to let their children out of their sight even for a moment.

Whilst it may be true that there are greater risks in society than there was, say, 30 or 40 years ago, it is a fact of life that children need to learn by experience. Life has inherent risks all the way through, for young and old people alike, but the sooner a child can learn to protect themselves from these potential pitfalls, the better equipped they will be as they enter into adolescence.

Perhaps one of the greatest fears parents face is road accidents. There are more cars on UK roads than ever before so it’s perhaps understandable that traffic remains one of the key concerns for parents the country over.

Guiding a child from a young age on the principals of crossing a road safely is the best thing any parent could do. But road accidents are only one of many possible hazards that children face on a daily basis, and many perceived ‘safe-havens’ can still harbour many risks.

School playgrounds, public play parks and even the back garden can lead curious kids into danger, and it goes without saying that any number of reasonable measures should be taken to help protect children from serious harm.

But even with all the precautions in the world accidents can still happen, so it’s important to be aware of any legal entitlements the child may have. For example, all children under the age of 18 have a legal right to claim accident compensation. Making a child accident claim, though, is not a straight-forward procedure, and will require personal injury experts to guide parents through the whole process, as there are many legal and medical implications to be considered.

Of course, no parent will want to dwell for too long on such scenarios, but at least this offers a little peace of mind should the worst happen. It’s no secret that accidents can happen to anyone at any time, but children need to learn from their mistakes by interacting with society, and they can’t do this if they are mollycoddled from a young age.

Isla Campbell writes on a number of topics on behalf of a digital marketing agency and a variety of clients. As such, this article is to be considered a professional piece with business interests in mind.

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