Quick answer
The two things worth checking on any children's garment are cords and small parts. Under the European standard EN 14682, clothing for children under seven should have no cords or drawstrings at all in the hood and neck area, and any decorative free end should be no longer than 75 mm. Everything else comes down to a thirty-second tug test on buttons, appliqués and ties.
Most of us buy kids' clothes on softness, fit and whether they will survive the washing machine. Safety tends to cross our minds only after a news story, or after a toggle comes off in a toddler's hand. But there is an actual European standard behind this, and once you know what it asks for, you can read a garment in about a minute — new, secondhand, or handed down from a cousin.
Why cords are the risk everyone underestimates
A drawstring looks like a detail. In practice it is a loop attached to a moving child. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has documented 26 reports of children who died when a drawstring on their garment became entangled — on playground slides, school bus doors and similar everyday objects. Neck and hood cords have caught on playground equipment, fences, escalators and farm machinery. Waist and hem cords create a different problem: they can catch in a car door and drag a child who is no longer noticed.
The reassuring part of that history is what happened next. After the industry standard removing neck and hood drawstrings was introduced in the US, the CPSC reported that fatal incidents involving cords through the neck or hood fell by around 75 percent, and fatalities associated with waist or hem drawstrings dropped to zero. Design changes worked. That is why you now see so few hoodies for small children with cords in them — and why a vintage or unbranded imported one deserves a second look.
What EN 14682 actually says
EN 14682:2014 is the harmonised European standard for cords and drawstrings on children's clothing. It covers garments up to 14 years, including dress-up costumes and ski clothing, and excludes footwear, hats, gloves and scarves. Because it is harmonised, a garment that meets its design rules is presumed safe on this point under EU general product safety law — the framework updated by the GPSR (Regulation 2023/988), which has applied since 13 December 2024.
The standard splits children into two groups, and the younger one gets the stricter rules:
| Area of the garment | Young child (0 to under 7, up to 134 cm) | Older child (7 to under 14) |
|---|---|---|
| Hood and neck | No cords or drawstrings at all. Adjustable tabs may be up to 75 mm. | Cords permitted but tightly restricted — no free ends or toggles that can snag. |
| Decorative straps and trims | No free end longer than 75 mm; fixed loops no more than 75 mm around. | Same principle, with allowances scaled to size. |
| Shoulder straps | Continuous length, attached at both ends. | Continuous length, attached at both ends. |
| Waist and hem | Different limits for close-fitting versus loose garments, to reduce drag-in risk. | Different limits for close-fitting versus loose garments. |
The 75 mm figure is the one worth memorising — roughly the length of your thumb. If a ribbon, tie or tassel on a small child's garment is noticeably longer than that and hangs free, it sits outside the spirit of the standard even if the garment came from a shop you trust.
Buttons, appliqués and everything that can come off
The second category is small parts. Buttons, snaps, toggles, sequins, glued-on eyes, embroidered patches and detachable bows are all things a child under three may put in their mouth once they are loose. Under the GPSR, manufacturers have to run a risk assessment on foreseeable use — and foreseeable use of a toddler garment includes chewing it.
The practical test is unglamorous and takes seconds: hold the garment in one hand, grip the button or decoration in the other, and pull firmly. If it shifts, twists or pops, it is not attached well enough. Sequins and glued appliqués fail this far more often than sewn buttons do. Good construction looks like a shanked button on reinforced stitching, or a metal snap set through a proper interfacing patch — not a decoration sitting on a single layer of jersey.
Two more things belong in this group. Loose ribbon ties at the back of a dress, which do double duty as both a small-parts and a snagging risk. And bedtime: snug-fitting sleepwear is generally recommended over loose, partly because loose fabric ignites more readily on contact with a flame. We covered the rest of that question in our room temperature and TOG guide.
A sixty-second check before it goes in the drawer
This is the whole routine. It works just as well on a hand-me-down bag from a friend, where nobody has checked anything.
- Hood and neck. Any cord at all on a garment for a child under seven? Remove it. An elastic collar or a flat adjustable tab does the same job.
- Free ends. Ribbons, ties and tassels — anything hanging loose much longer than a thumb gets shortened or cut off.
- Tug test. Every button, snap, toggle and appliqué gets a firm pull.
- Seams and edges. Look inside. Scratchy overlocked seams and stiff printed labels are a comfort problem rather than a safety one, but they are the reason a garment never gets worn.
- Fit at neck and wrists. Loose enough to move in, close enough not to catch.
None of this requires you to buy differently. It mostly requires one minute and a pair of scissors. That said, it is a quiet argument for simple, unfussy design: a garment with nothing glued or dangling on it has nothing to check. It is also the kind of garment that survives being passed on to the next child without anyone having to inspect it again.
FAQ
At what age are hood drawstrings allowed?
EN 14682 draws the line at seven. For children from birth to under seven — up to 134 cm — no cords or drawstrings are permitted in the hood or neck area. Between seven and fourteen, cords are allowed but with strict limits on length and free ends.
Should I just cut the drawstring out of a hoodie?
For a small child, yes. Child health guidance is straightforward on this: remove drawstrings from hoods, jackets and waistbands rather than trying to shorten or knot them. Most hoodies fit and function identically without one.
Does EN 14682 apply to dress-up costumes?
Yes. Disguise costumes and ski apparel are explicitly within scope, up to 14 years. Footwear, hats, gloves and scarves fall outside it — which does not mean a long scarf on a toddler is a good idea, only that a different set of rules governs it.
How do I know if something has been recalled in the Netherlands?
The NVWA publishes safety warnings for unsafe clothing and textiles sold in the Netherlands, and shares information about dangerous products with other EU countries through the European alert system. Worth a search if you have bought something unbranded from an online marketplace.
Are secondhand clothes riskier?
Not inherently — but they may predate current design rules, and buttons loosen with wear and washing. A secondhand garment deserves the tug test more than a new one does, not less. That is a five-minute job for a whole bag.
Does organic cotton make a garment safer?
On chemistry, certification helps — GOTS restricts the dyes and finishes used in processing. On mechanical safety, fibre content is irrelevant. A GOTS-certified hoodie with a neck cord is still a hoodie with a neck cord.
Keep exploring
- What Does GOTS-Certified Actually Mean for Baby Clothes?
- Dressing Kids with Eczema or Sensory Sensitivities: A Fabric & Fit Guide
- Clothes Kids Can Put On Themselves: A Guide to Independent Dressing (Ages 2–5)
- What Should Kids Wear to Bed? A Room Temperature and TOG Guide
Our own pieces are cut without hood cords or glued trims — simple by design, so they can be handed down without a safety audit. Have a look at the full collection.