Baby Products

How to choose a pram or travel system

The pram is usually the most expensive thing bought for a first baby, and the decision is easier once you know your own circumstances rather than the specifications.

• Measure your car boot before anything else. This eliminates more models than any other factor, and it's the one people check last. Fold the pram dimensions are on each product page.
• Count the stairs at home. If you're carrying it up a flight regularly, weight matters more than features. A three-kilo difference is enormous by the end of a year.
• Check it lies flat for newborns. Babies under six months need a flat position for their spine and breathing, a seat that only reclines partway isn't suitable from birth.
• Try folding it one-handed, mentally at least. You will fold it while holding a baby.
• Think about your surfaces. Larger air-filled wheels handle pavements, gravel and grass; small hard wheels are fine for smooth surfaces and shopping centres.

A 3-in-1 travel system combines carrycot, pushchair seat and car seat on one chassis, which saves buying separately, but check that the included car seat suits your car and meets current UK requirements.

Car seat safety: what UK law requires

Car seat rules are stricter than most other baby equipment and worth getting right.

Children in the UK must use a car seat until they are 12 years old or 135cm tall, whichever comes first. Seats must be EU-approved, showing a label with a capital E in a circle, either R129 (i-Size) or the older ECE R44/04 standard. Backless booster cushions are only approved for children over 22kg and 125cm.

Never buy or accept a second-hand car seat unless you know its full history, a seat involved in a collision can be damaged in ways that aren't visible. Check the standard on any seat's label before use, and consult the GOV.UK guidance or a retailer fitting service if you're unsure. Fitting is as important as the seat itself: many are installed incorrectly.

How to choose a cot bed

• A cot bed converts to a toddler bed, which extends its use to around four or five years and usually works out cheaper than buying twice.
• The mattress must fit with no gap greater than a couple of centimetres at the sides, gaps are a genuine safety risk. Buy the mattress designed for the cot where possible.
• Buy the mattress new. Guidance from The Lullaby Trust is that a firm, flat, waterproof and well-fitting new mattress is safest, even if the cot itself is second-hand.
• Check the drop-side or adjustable base height. A base that lowers as the baby grows saves your back early on and stops them climbing out later.

Safer sleep basics

Whatever you buy, the sleep advice matters more than the equipment. Current UK guidance is to place babies on their back to sleep, in a clear cot with no pillows, duvets or bumpers, in the same room as you for the first six months. The Lullaby Trust publishes the full guidance and it's worth reading before the baby arrives rather than after.

How to plan what you actually need

New parents are sold a great deal that goes unused. A rough order of priority:

• Before birth: car seat, somewhere safe to sleep, a way to transport the baby, nappies and wipes, a few sleepsuits
• First weeks: whatever feeding equipment you end up needing, which you often can't know in advance
• Later: highchair, booster seat, toys, most of the rest

Borrowing or buying second-hand is sensible for most things. The exceptions are car seats and mattresses, where new is the safer choice.

How to choose wipes

Wipes are the most-used baby product and the one most often bought on autopilot. Look for fragrance-free and alcohol-free for newborn skin, check whether they're plastic-free or biodegradable if that matters to you, and buy in bulk once you've found a brand that suits your baby, but test a small pack first, since skin reactions vary.