As of June of 2014, it is law in Saskatchewan that children must use a booster until age 7, or weigh 36 kgs (80 lbs.) AND stand 145 cm (4’9”) tall. Legal requirements often reflect a minimal standard. Children will be safer if they continue to use a booster beyond the legal requirement, until the seat belt fits them properly.
Always check the seat’s instructions for specific weight and height restrictions.
When to Use a Booster Seat
A booster seat is used for children who weigh at least 18 kgs (40 lbs.). Boosters will have maximum weight limits of 36 kgs. (80 lbs.), 45.5 kgs. (100 lbs.), or even 54.5 kgs. (120 lbs.). Some boosters will have minimum age suggestions in their manuals (i.e. 4 years old). If a child is young but heavy, a forward-facing seat with a high weight limit would be the best option.
Children should stay in their booster seats until they fit the adult seat belt properly. Most children should remain in booster seats until they are between the ages of 8-12 years.
Why Booster Seats Are Necessary
Booster seats are necessary during the period when children are too big for a forward-facing child seat but are too small for a seat belt. The booster seat works by raising the child in the vehicle seat so the seat belt is properly positioned low over the child’s hips, and collar bone (between the shoulder and neck). An incorrectly positioned seat belt over a child’s abdomen an cause the child to be seriously injured or even killed in a collision.
Does Your Child Need to Use a Booster Seat?
Children are often taken out of booster seats far too early. On average, children are ready for an adult seat belt when they are:
145 cm tall (4’9”) and
around 36 kgs. (80 lbs.).
This occurs for most children between the ages of 8-12 years. The true indicator of seat belt readiness is seat belt fit. Have the child sit with their back and bottom against the vehicle seat back and assess the following:
Do the child’s knees bend over the vehicle’s seat edge without slouching?
Does the lap portion of the vehicle seat belt lay low on the child’s hips, touching the thighs and not across the stomach?
Does the shoulder portion of the belt lie across the shoulder and not in front of the face or on the neck?
Can the child sit in the proper position (not slouching, falling asleep on the window, etc.) for the entire ride?
We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
Essential Website Cookies
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Other external services
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Building a Healthy Foundation: Nutrition for Families
The Supporting Parents Webinar Series focuses on topics to help parents and caregivers learn how to create environments that help children thrive. These webinars can be used as part of parenting groups or can be used by parents and caregivers independently. Interactive activities are used to share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children. A recording of the webinar content and activity instructions will be available after each event.
This webinar will discuss a common parenting concern: feeding a family and raising children who are happy, confident eaters. It will guide participants through a framework for creating lasting healthy eating habits for families. Common concerns discussed include: nutrition during pregnancy, developing a positive relationship with food, picky eating in children, and creating a balanced pattern of eating. This webinar includes interactive activities to begin practicing skills to build a healthy nutrition foundation.
Pieces of the Puzzle: - An Introduction to the Webinar Series and the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute
Children’s well-being depends on safe, nurturing environments with support, love, and consistent care. There are many pieces of the puzzle that are needed to help children thrive. This webinar highlights new and existing resources from the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute for service providers to support parents and caregivers. It includes information on the Supporting Parents Webinar Series and how these webinars can be used in parent programming. Interactive activities share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children.
The Wonderful World of Parenting: Parenting Roles and Responsibilities
This interactive virtual session explores the various hats that parents and caregivers wear. Participants reflect on how they carry out and feel about their various roles and responsibilities. This session offers opportunities to understand why these roles are important, how responsibilities can be reframed, and why taking care of oneself is a crucial part of caring for others.
All children depend on the adults around them to provide safe, healthy environments to learn, grow, and develop new skills. This presentation supports parents and caregivers in preparing for each stage of child development to better predict and prevent injuries. Unintentional childhood injuries are predictable and preventable, yet they persist as a leading cause of hospitalization and death for children in Canada. By recognizing and addressing common hazards in a child’s environment, parents and caregivers can keep their children safe from life-altering injuries without any bubble wrap.
The Supporting Parents Webinar Series focuses on topics to help parents and caregivers learn how to create environments that help children thrive. These webinars can be used as part of parenting groups or can be used by parents and caregivers independently. Interactive activities are used to share strategies and tips to enhance capacity to raise healthy, safe, and happy children. A recording of the webinar content and activity instructions will be available after each event.
This interactive webinar includes an overview of brain development and stress awareness, and introduces participants to the book My Curious Brain, the My Curious Brain Resource Room, and the My Curious Brain User Guide. These fun and educational resources can be used by parents and caregivers to teach children about how the brain works, big emotions, and how to manage them. With greater awareness of stress and how the brain works, children and the adults in their lives can develop self-regulation skills and strategies to help them effectively deal with stressors.