Annual babywearing compliance review: who needs to do it?
January is a terrific time to do a scheduled annual compliance and process review for your babywearing business. Although baby carrier manufacturers hold the highest regulatory burden in the industry, everyone working in babywearing should make this process standard.
The annual compliance review is usually associated with baby carrying manufacturing businesses in this industry. The truth is, no matter what kind of babywearing work you do, having a standard annual compliance review process is important.
Regulations and data for babywearing educators, healthcare workers, and other related professionals
Currently, there is no national or international standards board for babywearing educators, and there are no standardized regulations or laws governing the work.
However, as a babywearing educator or as a professional who is working in a space related to baby carriers, there are several things you should review annually as a best practice. You should review the nuts and bolts of your business, if you have one. But you should also stay up-to-date on current data, trends, standards, research, and recommendations for using baby carriers, especially as they pertain to newborns.
If you are working with a group or in a babywearing-adjacent industry, you may also like to read the section below about healthcare, nonprofit, and other organizations.
Not everything on the compliance list will pertain to your work, but you should look it over carefully. If you have questions about how to complete each step, the BCIA offers checklists and personalized advice to our members who have questions about the compliance process.
Compliance for baby carrier resellers
If you are a baby carrier reseller, it is important to understand the laws that govern your business. There may be national, state, and local rules to consider as well as laws or regulations in any country or state to which you are shipping merchandise.
You may be required to keep records from the brands you carry to show that they have certified their products as being compliant with baby carrier regulations. For example, in the US, you are required to check for a CPC for each shipment of baby carriers you receive.
In addition, you should stay informed about standards, recalls, and safety incidents.
Not everything in the annual compliance reiew list below will apply to you. If you have questions about regulatory compliance in your region, the BCIA offers resources, checklists, and advice to baby carrier resources across the globe.
Annual review for babywearing non-profits, healthcare organizations, and social service organizations
Even if your organization is not focused on baby carriers, if you are providing an adjacent service where you are working with babywearing families, it is good practice to appoint someone in the organization whose role it is to keep the organization up-to-date on any changes or information relating to baby carriers.
Pediatric nurses, birth and lactation workers, social workers, and therapists are just some examples of professionals who are not strictly “babywearing educators” but who may encounter questions about baby carrying or find themselves in a situation where the knowledge is important.
Organizations should be aware of which products have been recalled, safety data, and changes to “best practice” recommendations. Parents often have questions about hip development related to baby carrying, questions about “tummy time” and how it relates to carriers, or questions about whether they can carry their baby too much or too little.
Not everything in the annual compliance review list below will apply to you. If you have questions about any of these items, or if you need help creating an annual briefing for the staff in your organization, your BCIA membership ensures you will have access to support in these endeavors
Annual Compliance review for babywearing businesses: the nuts and bolts
BCIA product and service compliance review
In addition to the above review for annual babywearing compliance, the BCIA provides products and services that make it easy for our members to stay up-to-date with baby carrier compliance and regulations.
Here are changes and updates to note as you complete your annual review:
- Done-for-you CPC: The Children’s Product Certificate template and instructions have also been updated. They are not major changes, just a few clarifying points, but you should review them and update your certificates.
- Done-for-you checklists: Manufacturer and Retailer compliance checklists have been reviewed and updated as well.