THE mother of a young boy who suffered serious burns after touching her hair straighteners has warned other parents to put the styling tools far out of reach until they have cooled down completely.

Nicky’s hair straighteners had been switched off for five minutes when eight-month-old Jamie grabbed them, but they still burned the front of his leg so badly that he needed a skin graft.

Burns to the back of his leg were less serious and were allowed to heal naturally. Nicky, 32, from Merseyside, had been using her straighteners at home, but decided to finish her hair once she had arrived at a friend’s house. She put the straighteners near her bag on the landing and went to get Jamie.

Realising he needed a nappy change, she laid him down on the floor but realised there were no wipes in his changing bag and left him for a few seconds to get some.

He was crying when she returned and she noticed burn marks on his leg. Nicky said Jamie must have leaned over and pulled the straighteners onto his legs.

“I thought it was a safe distance,” she said. “I hadn’t realised they were still that hot. I wouldn’t have left them anywhere near him if I’d realised.”

Nicky soothed the burns under cold water while she waited for the ambulance.

“It was frightening,” she said. “The hospital investigated and I wasn’t held responsible. It was an accident but you still feel terribly responsible.”

She said: “Just don’t use them at all near children.”