Salford Council warning over dangerous costumes this Halloween

High infection rates in the city mean that Trick-or-Treating is banned this October, as the government announced that going from door-to-door counts as household mixing, which is not allowed under current local restrictions.

Nonetheless, many families, especially those with young children, will still dress up for the occasion this weekend, as shops across Salford fill up with themed goods.

However, Salford City Council has issued a warning about unsafe Halloween costumes on sale, which may be highly flammable, as costumes are still classed as toys instead of clothing, meaning that some manufacturers can dodge standards.

Children’s Halloween costumes are currently classified as toys. You should check they are CE marked to ensure they meet the required safety standards https://t.co/9oICOgKtQt #HalloweenAtHome 🔥 pic.twitter.com/vZxZeNsS66

— Salford City Council (@SalfordCouncil) October 22, 2020

Salford Council recommends checking the item for a CE label inside. Some CE labels are fake, and the middle line in the letter E should be slightly shorter. An EN71 label is also a good sign and shows that it was tested for the flame spread rate.

This frightening video produced by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service highlights how quickly the costumes can be set alight- and urge people to shop safer and keep children away from lit pumpkins and candles.

In 2018 Which? tested 20 children’s costumes which were sold on the high street and found that two had failed to meet the British Safety Standard requirements, including a werewolf costume from B&M.

TV presenter Claudia Winkleman is amongst those who have been campaigning for stricter safety standards after her daughter’s supermarket ‘witch’ costume caught fire back in 2014 during trick-or-treating and caused horrific injuries.

In the event of a Halloween fire emergency, the advice is to stop, drop, roll and call for help.

Keeping safe, here are some spooky ideas on what to do this Halloween despite the new COVID restrictions which are in place across the region.