Make Your Kitchen a Child-Friendly Zone

Make Your Kitchen a Child-Friendly Zone

With all the time you spend in your kitchen, it’s exciting to think about remodelling. But, before you begin, keep in mind that you are not the only one you must please; the ideal kitchen must look and operate differently when there are children to consider.

Your top priority should be to ensure that all of the individual elements are appropriate and safe for everyone in the home. This is simple to achieve with a customised kitchen design, as each component can be adjusted particularly to your family’s needs.

Here are some ideas for designing a child-friendly kitchen that works for everyone, proving that it’s important to make your kitchen safe for all.

Family-friendly kitchen design

Kids will be kids, and no matter how much you want them to stop running and playing with you while you’re cooking, it’s likely that they will do so at some time. So, to keep them safe and out of your way, design a kitchen layout that tells children to avoid the cooking and prep areas.

Placing your fridge near the door, for example, will give your children quick access without needing them to enter the main body of the kitchen, which helps make your kitchen child friendly. If you want them to set the table in time for tea, keep your china cupboard on the back side of a kitchen island or in a dresser near the dining table. This means that the kids can help out around the kitchen without getting under your feet as you cook.

Child-friendly Kitchen Worktop Surfaces

A family kitchen can get messy, so choose worktop surfaces that can be simply wiped to remove spills and smears. Quartz, for example, is a fantastic choice since it appears luxurious yet is nonporous, making it very easy to clean. It is also heat, scratch, and stain resistant, making it excellent for those clumsy moments with your children.

Consider putting slightly curved edges on work surfaces near kitchen doors and exits. This removes sharp edges and protects both your children’s heads and your adult hips.

Child-friendly Kitchen Furniture

Small children may leave scratches and sticky fingerprints on kitchen cabinets, but this is a small price to pay for a kid-friendly kitchen. Choosing models with basic panels and no gaps will make cleaning your kitchen easier since crumbs and spills will have nowhere to hide. The flat-fronted doors and drawers of our Linear kitchens are great for this task.

Another must-have is pint-sized furniture, which allows your children to sit for tea without help. Meanwhile, step stools can help them get to hard-to-reach spots like the kitchen sink, making the kitchen more accessible for children.

A customised kitchen island may be a welcome addition to a family-friendly kitchen, providing a space for the kids to assist you cook, do schoolwork, or simply relax and chat while you prepare a delicious dinner. However, before you choose your preferred design, think about how to make it as safe as possible.

A lot of people choose to incorporate a hob into their island to provide an additional cooking area. If you wish to do this, keep your children safe by using an induction hob with no exposed flames and safety indicators that flash when heated. Also, consider the height of potential seating places. A somewhat higher breakfast bar and a lower table adjacent to one side of the island will keep small fingers away from boiling pans. Just make sure there’s enough space for chairs to be pulled back without impeding kitchen flow.

Child-safe Kitchen Storage

Your kitchen storage must strike a balance between safety and accessibility. All of your tools should be available for use to you, but not for your children. For example, instead of a knife block, a wall rack may be a better solution, while other potentially harmful equipment, like as a cheese grater, could be kept in a separate drawer with a kid lock.

The utility room is a useful area to store items such as outerwear and shoes while keeping your kitchen as clutter-free as possible. If you don’t have enough space, a cloakroom-style closet near the garden entrance is an excellent substitute, as well as a convenient spot to store outdoor toys like balls, skittles, and deflated paddling pools.