Kidsafe is a rite of passage for ACT parents - and now it needs your help

Kidsafe has been working in the ACT for more than 40 years, its staff dedicated to the prevention of unintentional death and serious injury to children aged from newborn to 15 years.

As well as car-seat fittings, checks and hire, Kidsafe provides home and pedestrian safety advice and also advocates to government and business.

Kidsafe ACT chief executive officer Jes Chalmers said less than half of the organisation's costs were covered by funding from the ACT government, and the rest came from its shopfront services and donations.

The office in Pearce is in constant motion, with staff doing an incredible 20,000 car seat fittings a year.

Free checks of car seats and restraints take up about 75 per cent of their fittings.

Ms Chalmers said Kidsafe had been affected "hugely" by everyone staying at home due to summer's bushfire smoke and then the coronavirus pandemic.

"We stayed open because we're an essential service," she said.

"But in April, we lost $25,000 and had a 90 per cent decrease in drop-ins. Usually we'd have eight or more people waiting in the shop at a time, and we could only have one person in at a time.

"We had a 58 per cent drop in donations as well."

Manager Lisa Patterson said April had been particularly tough. Fewer checks could be done before the traditionally busy time of Easter, and all their bookings for car-seat hire - usually from people visiting from interstate - were cancelled.

Ms Chalmers said Kidsafe also lost $10,000 in donations and fees during the bushfires.

Staff remained on during the pandemic, with some management staff reducing their hours, including herself, to cope with the downturn.

"We were all right, but it was a struggle," she said.

The Canberra Recovery Appeal is raising money for local struggling charities, including Kidsafe, who could not do their usual fundraising due to the fires and pandemic.

Hands Across Canberra is co-ordinating the appeal, and donations can be made here.

New mum Kayla Thompson, of Holt, said it meant a lot to be able to visit Kidsafe to get her five-week-old son Jack Brice correctly fitted in his car seat.

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"It's our first baby so we had no idea how to do it," Kayla said.

"They give you a lot of information and have really helped us make everything safe for Jack."

Ms Patterson said over the years, she had seen car seats secured with octopus straps or chains and even a plank of wood used to balance a seat.

"Sometimes the seatbelt is not used at all and the car seat is just sitting there," she said.

"Sometimes babies are swaddled in their car seats, which is extremely dangerous."

But there was no judgement; the priority was keeping children safe and helping their parents to do so, with the correct information.

Ms Patterson said donations could help Kidsafe put on more staff and possibly extend their hours, the current staff frustrated they could no do more.

"We would love to be able to get more people through the door," she said.

Kidsafe also hoped to be able to supply more restraints specifically for low-birth-weight babies, saying there appeared to be a spike in recent months.