We have an indoor fire place, a pizza oven, a bbq and 2 fire pits. It is safe to say we love fire.

We also have a 4 year old, we adopted our son at the end of January 2020. A lot of parents find fire and kids not a fun combination; a few have asked us to explain our fire safety rules. We had 4 simple rules.

Number one is supervision.

Number two, the rules should be simple and easy for young children to follow.

Number three, get the children involved as much as possible.

Number four, it sounds harsh but discipline is really important. We set very clear rules and if our son broke them even a little bit we would put him on reflection time/time out.

Expanding on rule number 1, children should ALWAYS be supervised when fire is on, this requires extra planning. Ensuring one sensible adult is with the child at all times. If you don’t trust an adult to look out for your child for whatever reason we should not feel bad for not leaving our child alone with that person. Most of the times this is not the persons fault.

For rule two, when you start out with fire and small children only apply 1 or 2 rules, once the child has learnt these rules then you can add on more. We gave our son 1 very simple rule which was don’t throw anything in the living room even when the fire is not on. We had 2 fire guards, one that stopped sparks coming through and a child safety one that covered the whole hearth, it was screwed to the wall. We only took the child guard off once we knew our son would not touch the fire or go near it without asking myself or DJ. Only after our son understood the fire safety rules for the indoor fire did we start using outdoor fire pits and pizza oven. If you want to have a fire pit and/or pizza oven then draw a clear line where the child cannot go once the fire is on.

Rule three might feel a bit strange but it is a great way to communicate fire safety to children. We asked our son to help us clean the fire place the morning after a fire. He could see inside the fire place and we could explain how it works, this helped him understand why he had to follow the rules. He also go to use the hoover, which he loves!

Rule number 4 fire safety and discipline go hand in hand, for the children and adults. Me and DJ made sure we communicate the rules before we light an indoor or outdoor fire. If our son broke a rule, even a little bit, we would put him on reflection time and helped him understand why it was wrong. We would explain that he was precious to us and we did not want him to get hurt. It was only the times where we did not communicate before a fire that we had to use discipline. Children sometimes need reminding now and then of the rules, it’s also good for parents, guardians and any other sensible adult to recap themselves on the rules.

If your child is not at the age where they can understand instructions then I would recommend getting an outdoor fire pit that the child cannot reach. Additionally ensuring any indoor fire is not accessible until they can comprehend rules.

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