How to bring baby home?

[Llamallamallama]

We're in Central London and don't have a car. MW said a car seat is not required to leave the hospital, but how do we carry the baby home? Will presumably be in a taxi, 15 minutes home. I'm thinking the bassinet from our pram would be alright, though it is fairly bulky. Any other suggestions? Ta!

Could your baby wear a snow suit and then wrap a blanket around him/her and just hold in your arms?

Borrow a car seat? I wouldn't put a newborn in a taxi without a car seat.

You can get cheap car seats it’s worth having one
Not legally required but it is safer in a vehicle to have one and also would be handy
Mothercare do a good basic one

Lots of taxi services in London offer car seats for hospital transfers. Ask the hospital if they have one they recommend. Although I’d prefer to borrow one personally.

I personally wouldn’t take a newborn home in a taxi without a car seat. It’s legal but I wouldn’t say it’s safe. Can you borrow a car seat?

We also lived in London without a car. We bought a cheap capsule to come home from hospital and actually used it quite a bit during the first year for taxi rides all about the place.

We're quite tight on space so not wanting to purchase a carseat for just this one trip. All of our friends have bigger kids so no baby car seats available to borrow. Was also told we can strap the whole pram into the back of a black cab? But then we've got to bring that to the hospital with us, too...

Will you be using taxis/getting lifts places in the baby’s first year or so? If so it makes sense to have a car seat anyway.

Mothercare do v reasonably priced own brand car seats.

Just buy one tbh. The group 0 carriers do them until they’re about 12months, and it’ll save you another headache when you inevitably need to make another car or taxi journey over the course of their first year.

We don’t have a car and live in London and we have bought a car seat as we think we might get taxis occasionally... I’m also worried about getting to the hospital in labour... do people get taxis in labour? 🙈 I think we are a 30-40 min drive from hospital.

Don’t overestimate the size of the bay you’ll be staying in in hospital- I barely had room for my suitcase and DH, there’s no way a pram with a bassinet would have fit in as well!

It used to be the case that you could just wheel your pram into a black cab.

I'd get a black cab and put the whole pram in. Your DH won't need to be with you the whole time so he can go fetch the pram when you're ready to be discharged. He can take the cab home, put the empty pram in the cab and then come fetch you. Black cabbies are generally great with this kind of thing.

Good luck :)

DS came home on the tube (in a sling with my DH) and I took a taxi!

Good luck!
I’m think a car seat will be a useful buy as there may be times in the first year you might need to visit out of hours etc with your baby and you’d want to just be able to go without worrying about a car seat.

@weewillywinkie, that's incredible! I'd be far too nervous for the tube!

I'm not sure we'll be doing many cab rides as we live a few minutes walk from GP practice and bus to hospital is only 30 min or so, so seems silly to buy car seat for use for 15 minute ride... Rarely take uber or cabs in any event.

Perhaps will leave bassinet at home and DH can pop home and return to pick up baby and me when we're ready to go.

seems silly to buy car seat for use for 15 minute ride...

Brutally, it won’t seem silly if your taxi is involved in an accident and your baby is killed. Buy a car seat.

@PennyMordauntsLadyBrain, yes that's what I've been thinking about as well, we already have a wheelie case as well as a rucksack for DH, don't want to crowd the bay.

@PotteringAlong, fair point but why wouldn't the midwife and government recommendations be stronger about requiring car seats?

I think they’re pretty damn strong to be honest.

why do you need to get a taxi if there is a bus?
just pop baby in buggy and get the bus home?

Just thought it'd be easier to take a taxi as it's quicker and will have bags etc, do other people take the bus?

@PotteringAlong, my MW as well as hospital antenatal classes told us quite strongly no requirement to have car seat and wasn't required by government road safety regulations. I'm was a bit surprised TBH but seemed it really wasn't a worry to have baby in car seat...

I guess you've got to view the recommendations as a basic line in the sand ......and there's times when we'll consider the basic requirement more than enough, and times when individually we'll do more than the basic.

Risk is based on likelihood as well as severity ..... so if you take a cab once a year, then the chances of you having a road accident are clearly much less than someone in their car for several hours a day. Severity possibilities are however roughly the same.

Most babies that get injured in public transport in London, so so because parents don’t use carseats on taxis / the tube / buses etc. I suggest buying one. They can then be used everywhere.

Assess the risk yourself rather than relying on the government. Most people are aware the risk of car accident is low, but the concequences massive if your baby is not securely in a car seat.

If you do not want to get a car seat then strap the carry cot from the pram in, my pram has this function but we don’t use it, or get the bus.