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Plan the room around small viewers first

Children sit closer to the screen than adults do, they move about far more, and they treat a sofa as a trampoline. That changes almost every decision you make about layout. Before you buy anything, walk the room and think about three things: where eyes will rest, where feet will travel, and where cables are likely to end up. A screen that looks perfect from an adult's armchair can be genuinely uncomfortable for a seven-year-old on a floor cushion, and a cable that hides neatly behind a grown-up's chair becomes a tripwire when a five-year-old takes a shortcut to the popcorn.

• Keep a clear, generous route from the door to the seating so nobody cuts across the front of the screen in the dark.
• Arrange the main seating so the middle of the screen sits roughly at eye level for whoever is smallest in the household.
• Leave a metre or so of empty floor in front of the screen as a buffer zone for cushions, beanbags and wriggling.

Think about light as well. Blackout blinds make an afternoon film feel like a proper cinema, but choose cordless ones or clip the cords well out of reach. Cord loops are among the most serious safety risks in any room children use, so it is worth paying a little more to remove them altogether.

Secure every cable before you switch anything on

A dangling HDMI lead is an invitation. If a child can reach it, they will pull it, and whatever is on the other end will follow. Run cables through proper trunking, adhesive conduit or cable clips, and keep power leads behind furniture rather than across open floor. Where a cable must cross a walking route, take it along the skirting board and cover the whole run.

• Use a surge-protected extension lead with a switch, housed in a closed cable box rather than left loose on the carpet.
• Fit socket covers on any low-level outlets and check that plugs are fully pushed home.
• Shorten slack with reusable ties so nothing forms a loop a small hand can hook.
• Push media units back against the wall and fix them to it, so a console cannot be pulled forward.

If you have a projector, remember the beam is bright enough to hurt young eyes. Mount it overhead or on a high shelf, keep the lens covered when it is not in use, and teach children never to look into it.

Mount the screen as if a child will lean on it

Wall mounting is usually the safer option, because it removes the risk of a set being toppled. Choose a bracket rated well above the weight of your screen, and fix it into studs or use proper heavy-duty anchors for the wall type. Get the height right while you are at it: the bottom of the screen generally wants to sit somewhere between 60cm and 75cm from the floor for comfortable seated viewing, depending on your sofa height.

If you are keeping a television on a stand, put it on something low and wide, push it back as far as the room allows, and use an anti-tip strap or wall anchor. Avoid glass-topped stands entirely. Pull-down and fixed projector screens should be anchored at both ends, and any freestanding screen needs a weighted base that a child cannot tip by leaning on the fabric.

Set volume limits and sensible viewing habits

Most modern televisions, soundbars and AV receivers hide a maximum volume setting in the sound menu, and it is one of the most useful parental controls available. Set it once and a small hand on the remote cannot push the output to full during an explosion scene.

• Cap the maximum output using the volume limit or maximum volume option.
• Switch on dialogue enhancement or clear-speech mode so nobody needs to turn the film up to follow the plot.
• Enable night mode or dynamic range compression, which evens out sudden loud moments.
• Keep average listening levels around 70dB, roughly the volume of a normal conversation at close range.

For headphones, the long-standing guidance is 60 per cent volume for no more than 60 minutes at a time, with a proper break afterwards. Young ears are more sensitive than adult ones, and hearing damage accumulates quietly over years. It also helps to build a routine: a film, then a pause, then something quieter.

Choose fabrics and finishes that forgive real life

A dark room and pale upholstery are a difficult pairing, especially with children in the house. Look for tight-weave fabrics, faux leather or microfibre, all of which wipe clean with a damp cloth. Removable, machine-washable covers are the real prize, because you can deal with a spilled drink properly rather than dabbing at it hopefully.

Mid-tone carpet is a sensible compromise: dark shades show every crumb, pale ones show every mark. Skip glass coffee tables in favour of rounded wooden or fabric ottomans, and choose melamine or bamboo bowls over glass for popcorn. A fabric protector spray applied when furniture is new buys you valuable reaction time.

Keep remotes and small parts out of reach

The remote is the piece of kit children most want and the one most likely to go missing. A wall-mounted caddy or a high shelf keeps it tidy and out of reach when the room is not in use, and it stops the buttons being mashed during a game of chase.

Button batteries are the bigger concern. Any device with a coin cell should have its compartment secured with a screw, and if the cover is loose, tape it shut. Lock the smart television's app store and purchase settings with a PIN, store discs and game cartridges in a lidded box, and consider a simple universal remote with large, obvious buttons for the children to use under supervision. A little planning in advance means the whole family can enjoy the room without you hovering behind the sofa.