E232
Common Safety Signs
1.
Introduction
CLEAPSS frequently receives requests for details of suppliers of commonly-used safety signs and
chemical hazard symbols for education purposes, to reinforce control measures during practical sessions
and around the school in general. As a service to members, we have produced our own versions of these
signs and symbols and collected them together in the form of this electronic publication. The legal
background for safety signs can be found in Appendix 1.
Uses of these signs
Teachers and technicians can copy, paste and resize the signs from this document and insert them into a
document, label or poster. It is envisaged that they can be put to a number of uses as follows.

To reinforce, inform, warn and instruct employees, pupils and visitors in school of risks to health and
safety.

Exhibiting large posters to place around the room.

In the text of any worksheets, but there should be verbal and written warnings as well.
This document does not feature a complete list of designs. You will see that some designs and texts do
vary from one commercial supplier to another, eg, some heads have hair and some are bald. There is no
reason why new designs (eg, mobile phones are prohibited ) could not be made by pupils so long as some
basic design criteria are followed. Text can also be added in the same style and examples can be found
online.
A note on chemical hazard pictograms
Chemical hazard pictograms, which appear on containers for chemicals, have either the pictograms from
the new EU Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulations from the Global Harmonised System or
the pictograms from the CHIP Regulations. These do not appear in this document. The GHS chemical
pictograms appear in E236.
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Warning signs
These signs must be triangular in shape. They must have black ink on a yellow background and the yellow
background must cover more than 50% of the sign.
They could be used on cupboards, on electrical equipment, in text containing
hazardous chemicals or apparatus. The text, if used, should be precise and use
only a few word, in black type on a yellow background.
To create your own sign, the empty sign and the sign board below can be copied
and pasted into both Word or PowerPoint. The objects can be adjusted into the
correct positions, grouped together and the picture saved, like the one on the right.
Useful warning signs
Danger
Hot Water
Right click the board
below, copy, paste in
place and add text.
Black text
Warning (add a sign)
Sign board
Corrosive substance
Risk of electric shock
Biohazard
Extremely or highly
flammable substances
Harmful substances
Irritant substances
Danger
Laser beam
Oxidising substance
Non-ionising radiation
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Radioactive material
Toxic / Very Toxic
substance
Gas cylinder
Trip hazard
Hot
Cold
Strong magnetic field
Explosive atmosphere
Hot liquid
High noise levels
Slippery surface
Explosive material
Mandatory signs
These signs must be obeyed at all times. Therefore, if a ‘Wear Eye Protection’ sign is displayed in a
room, everyone present must wear such equipment all the time that they are present. Obviously these
signs cannot be used casually! It may sometimes be helpful, however, to use a temporary mandatory
sign, provided that it is removed immediately it ceases to apply. For instance, the ‘you must wear eye
protection’ sign can be placed on the board at the beginning of a practical session when hazardous
chemicals are being used.
These signs must be round in shape. They must consist of a white pictogram on a
blue background and the blue background must cover more than 50% of the sign.
The writing (if required) should be white text on a blue background.
To create your own sign, the empty sign and the sign board overleaf can be copied
and pasted into both Word or PowerPoint. The objects can be adjusted into the
correct positions, grouped together and the picture saved, like the one on the right.
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Useful mandatory signs
You MUST…
…do this (general sign
with white text below on
blue background below)
Sign board
…wear eye
protection
…wear protective
gloves
Right click the board
below, copy, paste in
place and add text.
White text
…lift correctly
…stack correctly
…use
adjustable guard
…use
guard
…wash hands
…wear face mask
…wear protective
footwear
…keep this area litter
free
…wear a lab coat
…wear ear
defenders
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Prohibition signs
This activity is not allowed on the premises.
These signs must be round in shape. They must be a black pictogram on a white background, red edging
and a diagonal red line. The red part must cover at least 35% of the sign. The text (if required) should be a
white text on a red background.
To create your own sign, the empty sign and the sign board below can be copied and pasted into both
Word or PowerPoint. The objects can be adjusted into the correct positions, grouped together and the
picture saved.
You MUST NOT…
…exit this way
(and basic sign)
Sign board
…have naked flames
…eat or drink
Right click the board
below, copy, paste in
place and add text.
White text
…pour waste down this
drain
© CLEAPSS® 11/2011
…put water on a fire
…drink water from
this tap
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Evacuation route, location of safety equipment or safety
facility, or safety action signs escape
This signs must rectangular or square shaped. There should be a white pictogram on a green background
and the green part must cover at least 50% of the sign. The text (if required) should be white text on a
green background.
The sign and the sign board below are copied and pasted into PowerPoint. The objects can be adjusted
into the correct positions, grouped together and the picture saved. The arrows can be rotated in the
PowerPoint file.
Customise
Sign board
Electrical cut off
Gas cut off
Right click the board
below, copy, paste in
place and add text.
White text
Break glass in
emergency
Fire exits
Emergency exit
Emergency exit
First Aid point
Eye-wash station
Emergency exit
Emergency exit
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Fire equipment signs
This signs must rectangular or square shaped. There should be a white pictogram on a red background
and the red part must cover at least 50% of the sign. The text (if required) should be white text on a red
background.
To create your own sign, the empty sign and the sign board below can be copied and pasted into both
Word or PowerPoint. The objects can adjusted into the correct positions, grouped together and the picture
saved.
Customise
Sign board.
Fire phone
Fire alarm
Fire extinguisher
Hose
This way for fire
fighting equipment
This way for fire
fighting equipment
Fire ladder
Break seal
Right click the board
below, copy, paste in
place and add text.
White text
Fire blanket
Fire
blanket
This way for fire
fighting equipment
Much of the detail of what the fire extinguisher contains and which fires it is designed to work with can be
found on the extinguisher and the holder as supplied.
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Online sites for making and buying labels
There are many online sites from which you can buy safety signs and labels.
This sign was generated using the site www.online-sign.com/index.php. Signs can be
printed directly onto A4 paper or card even to A3. The file can be saved as a PDF file,
imported into drawing software such as Corel Draw, resized and exported in different file
formats.
Danger
Hot water
An online-sign.com production
sign ref st681317896376
Appendix 1 Legal references
The legislation behind the warning, prohibition, mandatory and emergency action signs can be found in the
Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations1, which enacts EU Council Directive 92/58/EEC.
The Guidance on these regulations can be found in Safety Signs and Signals, L64, Second edition 2009,
which can be downloaded free of charge2. Another source of information can be found in an International
Standard3. This is a very expensive booklet, which may be obtained from libraries that subscribe to British
Standards.
The Regulations require that signs are to be used where risks to health and safety have not been
controlled (avoided) by other means. Therefore, signs cannot be a substitute for other methods of
ensuring safety, eg, discussing safe methods with pupils, telling them when to wear eye
protection, including safety information on work sheets, etc. Equally, if the risks from particular
hazards can be controlled by other means, then signs are not necessary. It is also necessary not to have
too many signs.
Fire safety signs must be displayed and must conform to the standard designs.
The Regulations above do not apply to signs on packages or containers; these are governed by other
regulations. Chemical labelling pictograms for the labelling of hazardous chemicals are defined in
Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures
(CLP Regulation). These are based on advice from the United Nations4.
1
Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 SI 1996/341, The Stationery Office 1996
ISBN 978 0 11 054093 1 (as amended).
2
www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/l64.pdf
3
BS ISO 7010:2011.
4
http://live.unece.org/trans/danger/publi/ghs/pictograms.html
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