Babies and fireworks | Ask DadPad

Ask DadPad, Safety

Ask DadPad: Is it safe to take my baby to a fireworks display?

Posted on 31st October 2025

A few weeks ago, we were asked by a dad for advice on whether or not it’s safe to take babies to a fireworks display. We’ve sought out the best information we can find online and have used that to put together what we hope is a useful blog post on the topic of safety in relation to Bonfire Night, Diwali and other events where there might be fireworks.

Babies at fireworks displays

The good news is that there is no suggestion that babies should be kept away from fireworks displays. However, there are definitely some useful and important advisory points for new parents to bear in mind at this time of year.

Firstly, the main thing to be mindful of is that babies and young children are much more sensitive to noise than adults. This is due to their ear canals being smaller than ours, which means that the sound pressure is much greater, and this means that there everything will feel much louder, the smaller the person is.

As well as making your baby feel uncomfortable or upset, the loud noises can also impact on their hearing and can even, in some cases, cause hearing loss. A blog post from the Angliear Hearing Audiology Team in Cambridgeshire from 2024 indicates that:

Many fireworks can be as loud as 140 decibels – and sounds of 80dB can affect the hearing development in small children.

For these reasons, it’s generally advised to use noise-cancelling headphones when attending a noisy event, such as a fireworks display. The Paedaudiology Team at Trafford General Hospital encourage parents to access these, which usually have volume controls set to go no higher than 85dB.

If this is not something that you can afford or can easily access, then ear-muffs are an alternative, but be aware that their noise reduction abilities will be much less.

You should also consider finding somewhere slightly further away to take your baby to view the fireworks, as this will again lessen the noise. If you’re at a specific event, then try and stand as far back as you can – and this will also have the added benefit of reducing other risks and concerns, which we’ll look at shortly, including the pressure of crowds and the smoke and sparks from a bonfire.

Alternatively, if there’s a local vantage point where you and your family can view (maybe lots of different) fireworks from, this is even better (and will of course save you on admission fees! – which might be useful if it’s a first for your little one and you’re not sure how they’ll react).

Best of all is to have a position indoors from which you and your baby can view the fireworks, although of course this is not always possible. It does mean that you’ll be better able to keep your baby warm, though, which is another key consideration.

Wrap up warm…

Obviously, with fireworks events usually taking place after dark and in the winter months, it’s essential that your baby or little one is suitably dressed, so that they won’t get cold. Great advice from the Start-Rite Shoes blog is to consider “layering your baby in warm, comfortable clothing so they can stay nice and cosy”, especially as you’ll often find yourselves waiting around for quite a while on the evening.

And, obviously, make sure that their extremities, from their heads to their feet, are protected appropriately, with hats, gloves and shoes/feet-covering suitable to their age.

…but don’t get too hot!

You might think that a good place to stand would be near the bonfire – if there is one – as this can help keep your baby warmer. However, if you’re too close, your little one might start to get really hot and uncomfortable, which is again not great. [You can find out more information on babies’ ability to regulate their own temperature in our Every Sleep Counts blog post from 2020.]

There’s also the danger that a spark from the fire could burn anyone standing nearby.

Another thing to be mindful of in relation to the bonfire is to stand with your children upwind of the smoke, as breathing in smoke or ash from fires could irritate their airways. The chemicals released by the burning wood (and anything else on the bonfire) is not great for anyone, but especially for little ones whose lungs are still developing.

Get comfortable

Another really useful piece of advice from the Start-Rite Shoes blog is to consider how your baby or child is positioned to view the display; what you’re looking to guard against here is them having to strain their little necks to be able to see what’s going on. If they do, there’s a danger that they’ll feel pain, or just get fed up with not being able to enjoy it all as they might have hoped.

For that reason, think carefully about how you’re holding your baby, or positioning your toddler, before the display starts. A baby carrier is suggested as a good idea, especially as this will also enable you to have your hands free for anything else that you might need to do.

Again, though, as suggested above, being at an alternative vantage point – such as on a hill or area of high ground – rather than actually AT an organised display, might be a better idea at this stage?

Fears and startles

Being out in the dark, mixing with unfamiliar people, and with lots of totally new loud, bright and colourful experiences happening all around could well frighten or worry your baby or little one, and that’s totally normal.

For babies – up to around the age of two-three months – there will be a number of involuntary reflexes still in place, which your Midwife will have checked for soon after baby was born. One of these is the startle reflex (also called the Moro reflex) which is when your baby will respond to a ‘surprise’ or something which has frightened them, such as a loud noise or a sudden movement, by throwing their arms and legs outwards before drawing back in again, and of course they may also cry. The loud noises of fireworks may trigger this response.

Of course, even when they’ve grown out of this automatic response, lots of small children (and older) are frightened by or fearful of loud noises and this is again something to be aware of. As the child’s parent, it’s important that we set a positive example and remain calm in these situations. Claire Halsey, a child psychologist interviewed by CBeebies Parenting, advises to speak openly with your child about what is worrying them:

Don’t dismiss it. You can normalise it, acknowledge it and ask them to tell you a bit more about it.

At the same time, though, Claire does not suggest that a child be forced to confront their fears, but instead to take time to gradually help them become exposed to and familiar with (for example) noises. You can find out more about helping children overcome their fears, especially in relation to Bonfire Night, here.

CBeebies also has a great selection of online activities, programmes and video clips to help little children prepare for fireworks and Bonfire Night, including:

Bing’s Super Loud Fireworks – with Bing and friends preparing to watch fireworks enjoyably and safely from home;
My First Bonfire Night – part of their My First Festivals series; and
It’s Time To See The Fireworks – fireworks-focused episode with JoJo and Gran Gran.

Firework safety

It’s always good to remind yourself of the Firework Code, which you can easily find online – including on the RoSPA website.

A particularly useful aspect of firework safety for parents of young children relates to safety with sparklers – did you know that a lit sparkler can reach temperatures of 1,000°c?! Key points here include:

Not letting children under 5 years hold a sparkler;
Never holding a sparkler yourself when also holding or using a sparkler;
Make sure anyone handling a sparkler wears gloves, and holds them – no more than one at a time – at arm’s length, away from their clothes and hair; and
Having a bucket of cold water to hand for all used sparklers to be placed in.

There’s also a great resource on the CAPT website, which suggests ideas for parents and professionals who work with young children to help share firework safety messages, especially in the lead up to an event. And there’s also a link to a set of firework safety tips from Fireman Sam!

Be Prepared

It’s concerning to learn that more than 550 children under 16 find themselves in A&E each year in the four weeks surrounding Bonfire Night, and that there has also been a fourfold increase in serious firework burns to children between Jan-Oct 2025 when compared to the same period in 2025 (figures from the Children’s Burns Trust).

Ken Dunn, Vice Chair of the Children’s Burns Trust and a retired Consultant Burns and Plastic Surgeon, has advocated that we help reduce the risk of this happening by:

…keeping a safe distance, following safety instructions and attending organised public displays rather than lighting fireworks at home…

Should the unthinkable happen and someone in your party gets injured or burnt by a firework or flame, it’s important to know what to do. We have information in DadPad on treating burns (you can find out more via the NHS website), and it’s never too early to teach children the ‘Stop, Drop and Roll’ routine:

If your clothes catch fire – don’t panic! Instead: STOP, DROP and ROLL – which means:

STOP what you’re doing
DROP to the ground and cover your face with your hands
ROLL over and over to put out the flames (from the CAPT webpage).

Giving it a miss?

Finally, having considered all the above, bear in mind that there’s always next year. If the timings of the display are going to interfere with your baby’s established sleep or feeding routine, if the weather isn’t great, or your little one seems a bit off colour, then it might make more sense to give this year a miss.

As well as watching displays from indoors, alternative ways to celebrate might include:

Watching displays on television (check out New Years’ displays on YouTube for inspiration!);
Getting involved in some firework-focused crafts at home; or
Blowing bubbles.

And also be prepared to come away early if you need to – if your baby or child shows signs of distress, then it’s always better to take them home, or at least to somewhere where the noises, crowds and experiences are less intense. Have an escape plan ready, in case you need it on the night.