The Joie Every Stage is one of the newest additions to Joie’s ‘Look Back Longer’ range and does exactly what it says on the tin; 1 car seat, 4 stages, 12 years. Similar to the award winning Stages car seat the Every Stage will rearward face until 4 years old but also offers forward facing travel from 4 until your child is approximately 12.
The Every Stage is designed to transport your baby from birth unlike a lot of other multi stage car seats that are only to be used from 6-9 months old.
First let’s talk about fitting the Every Stage in to the car; to fit rearward facing the Every Stage is really simple to install, it fits a lot like an infant carrier and there is just one clip to fasten in the fitting process. It is also worth noting that when in the rearward facing position, there are not multiple recline positions, just one. The angle of the recline is excellent and similar to that of a 2way Pearl, most mums I have spoken to also tell me their children much prefer to be reclined when rearward facing rather than sat up fully. There is a 5 point harness and lots of support for the newborn to keep them snug when travelling.
The Every Stage can rearward face until approximately 18kg which is around 4 years old and as mentioned earlier can be turned forward facing once you get to this stage, installing the car seat forward facing is a little more tricky but still not too difficult. Although there are 4 recline positions when forward facing you must install the car seat in the position you require, to change the angle of the recline the car seat must be re-installed, this is different to most car seats that can be reclined after installation.
Although it is safer to rearward face until 18kg, the Every Stage can also forward face from 9kg onwards, once your child reaches approx 18kg the 5 point harness can be removed and your toddler is fastened in with the normal seat belt. The head rest is easily adjustable as your child grows and the side storage pockets will hold all their travel necessity’s.
At £200 the Every Stage is AMAZING value for money working out at just £16.67 per year, this would be a great option for Mum and Dad or even as a secondary can seat in grandparents car.