Dame Judith Hackitt, of the Health and Safety Executive has criticised the increasingly excessive worries over health and safety in schools, which she describes as “nonsensical”.

The phrase “its health and safety gone mad!” is a regular saying these days, as more and more companies, work places and schools make the decision to ban a seemingly harmless activity or item. For instance, one school in the UK has a ban on their students wearing frilly socks because they are a trip hazard. In one out of four schools, traditional playground games “tig” and British bulldog are now banned, and in some schools even throwing snowballs are banned!

Dame Judith argues that these ludicrous bans are undermining the efforts of the HSE to improve safety in dangerous industries, such as construction and farming.  So much so, she has said that children should be allowed to climb trees and play games that have a risk of injury, going on to say that not allowing children to learn to handle risk will lead to young adults who are poorly equipped to deal with realities of the real world.. The will become a liability in any workplace if they don’t have the basic skills, to exercise judgement”.

In the most part we agree with what Dame Judith is saying. Health and safety management is not about ruining peoples fun, it’s about managing and preventing serious risks.

Instead of worrying about what type of sock your students are wearing, schools should be concentrating on managing real risks such as Fire Safety Procedures and asbestos management.

Asbestos Management in Schools

As it stands at the moment, government policy states that if the asbestos is in good condition and is unlikely to be disturbed, they will not remove the asbestos that in the school, instead opting for safe management of the material for its remaining life. This means that a majority of our schools, here in the UK, still have asbestos present in the building. This policy of not removing asbestos unless it is truly necessary often leaves schools with asbestos that is either in bad condition, unsealed or hidden.

 Some of the schools in the UK have developed an effective asbestos management system; however, a majority does not.

A nationwide study conducted in 2010 of 600 school safety representatives highlighted the shocking fact that only 28 per cent of schools had the presence of asbestos clearly marked, and perhaps even more shockingly, when they were asked if they had an accurate register of where the asbestos was located in the buildings, only a third of the representatives where aware of the register, and only 20 per cent said that the register was shown to contractors before they began building work.

There seems to be a common trend here, which is the serious lack of awareness about asbestos. Over the years inspections have been carried out which has highlighted that many schools have an inadequate management system in place and/or the school safety representatives are confused by where the responsibility lies when it comes to managing asbestos. This has forced the authorities to have to provide advice or even enforcement action against some schools.  

Shockingly, inadequate surveys have been conducted and the presence of asbestos has not been identified because it is located in a hard to access area. Inadequate surveying and inefficient management systems has led to the Asbestos Consultants Association to conclude that, in many schools, asbestos management is ineffective, and at times dangerous.

The fact of the matter is, asbestos can be disturbed through normal school activity, and this can cause the fibres to be released over a period of years, meaning that children and teachers could be at risk of contracting asbestos related illnesses.

It is important that schools start managing asbestos correctly, and label any asbestos risks present in the building correctly.

Summary

We are fully aware that there are hundreds of serious risks that are managed successfully on a day to day basis by schools and for that we are grateful; however, wrapping a child up in cotton wool isn’t going to help with developing their own risk judgements. If a girl trips over her frilly sock and hurts her knee, it is very unlikely she will wear that pair of socks again.

We believe that schools should allow children to make their own judgements, and focus on putting into place health and safety management systems that will really make a difference, not only for the children but for the staff as well.

The amount of schools that are reported to be managing asbestos correctly is incredibly low. We believe that this is unacceptable, and more must be done to help raise awareness of asbestos in school buildings and how to manage asbestos correctly. This includes labelling any area of the school that is known to hold asbestos, keeping fully comprehensive records of the location and condition of the asbestos, and passing this to any contractors who are going to be undertaking any work on the building.

Here at Label Source we are proud to offer a comprehensive range of asbestos signs. However, if you can not find the exact sign you require, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.  

Thermal transfer labels are manufactured for use with industrial thermal transfer printers, and come in a selection of sizes, colours and shapes to suit a variety of purposes. They are also available in a variety of materials, in order to allow you to select the appropriate level of durability and security required for your labelling needs. At Label Source, we stock the following selection of Thermal Transfer Labels:

Self-Adhesive Paper 

Our self-adhesive paper have a thickness of 71 micron, and are available in a range of sizes and colours. They have an operating temperature range of -15 to +90 degrees (celsius), making them suitable for use in a variety of environments. Each label is top coated for print clarity, making them ideal for barcode labelling.

Self Adhesive Vinyl 

Like the regular self-adhesive labels, these vinyl thermal transfer labels come in a wide selection of colours and shapes, with a top coat for print clarity. What sets these labels apart is their high tack and bond properties, as well as their weather and chemical resistant properties. They also have an increased operating temperature range, allowing them to be used at lows of -30 degrees.

Destructible 

These labels are available in two material colours, but still come in a selection of shapes and sizes for your convenience. Like the self-adhesive vinyl, the material is highly bonding, and is resistant to weather, water, UV and chemical damage. Unlike the self-adhesive labels, however, these have a thickness of 50 micron for added durability.To provide improved security, the material fragments on attempted removal, which means that it cannot be removed intact or re-used. 

Tamper Evident 

These labels also come in a thickness of 50 micron, and have an impressive operating temperature of -40 to +150 degrees (C). They are highly durable, and can withstand damage caused by poor weather conditions or contact with chemicals. An ideal choice for security marking, this label will delaminate on attempted removal, leaving a pattern behind to mark the area. 

To see our full selection of tags, labels and nameplates, click here.

When storing gas cylinders, it is important to remember that the cannisters can be extremely volatile due to the substances contained within, and must therefore be handled with the greatest amount of care. To prevent accidents involving gases under pressure, it is vital that these cannisters are correctly labelled and marked-out wherever and whenever present. It is also important t that these notices and instructions are clear and easy to comprehend, to prevent confusion and to give prudent notice of their location. 

Gas Cylinder Storage Signs 

To aid in the identification of designated areas to safely stock and handle gas cylinders, we stock a selection of gas cylinder safety and warning signs to provide instructions. These signs identify the contents of the cylinders and provide warnings regarding the increased risks associated with them, allowing you to alert individuals to possible dangers and guide responsible practice.

Gas Cylinder Tags 

To aid the handling and transportation of these cylinders, we provide gas cylinder safety tags, which indicate the use status of each particular container. This allows users to identify when the cylinder is full and ready to use, as well as highlighting when the cylinder is empty and unsafe for operation. For easy comprehension, these tags are also colour coded to provide a clear signal.

To see our full range of hazardous substances and chemical signs, click here.

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Amongst our range of products, we have a selection of products to identify water supply in pipework (both above ground and underground), in pressure vessels, in treatment equipment, and in storage tanks and drums. This includes the supply to domestic, commercial and industrial locations.

The location of underground pipe systems can be identified by either our rot and chemical resistant, polythene underground warning tapes, or by using scratch detectable tape with stainless steel tracer wires. These can assist in locating pipework or surrounding ductwork to prevent damage during excavations by utility or third party contractors. The underground warning tapes include options for reclaimed water, rain water as well as water main, sewer and drain. They are manufactured from 50 micron (0.05mm thickness) virgin grade low-density polyethylene, and contain no PVC. The tapes comply with a number of standards, including: BS2782 for the testing of plastic materials; BS381C for colours; and BS3012 specification for low and intermediate density polythene. The traceable tapes are constructed from 150 micron thick, and the printed details are coated with a transparent layer to provide scratch and chemical resistance. Again, a range of water pipe, drain and sewer options are available.

Pipeline identification tapes can identify the content of water carrying pipes, and are manufactured to BS1710 and BS4800 for construction and colour schemes. Most of the tapes relating to water content tend to be black on green (colour reference 12D45). Our comprehensive range includes drinking water, mains water, chilled water, bore hole water, condensate, hot water, process water, rain water, boiler feed and cold feed. Click this link to see the full range. Also, we have waste water tapes for drain or effluent, and direction of flow tapes.

In addition, there are several tagging options for pipe fittings and valves. There are blank tags or custom printed tags in indoor and outdoor plastics, and metals (aluminium, brass and stainless steel).

At the outlet point, we have a selection of safety labels and signs for drinking water, not drinking water and hot water to ISO EN 1710 and the Safety Signs and Signals Regulations 1996.

If you do not see what you are looking for in the above, please contact us for quotations on custom printed products.

Every time we go to the bathroom, we are presented with blue signs reminding us to wash our hands.  However, it seems that these signs have become faded into the background and people have started to not notice them, or ignore them all together! Washing your hands after you have been to the bathroom and before you prepare food will kill any viruses you may be carrying and eliminate the risk of infection or contamination. A lesson that Raigmore hospital in inverness is hoping to teach their patients and visitors.

Raigmore hospital has arranged demonstrations on hand hygiene as the hospital has had multiple outbreaks of the Norovirus. Noroviruses are a group of viruses that cause inflammation of the stomach and large intestine lining.  If you have contracted a norovirus you may experience flu type symptoms, such as, a low-grade fever, Chills, Headaches, muscle aches and fatigue.  Norovirous can be controlled simply by washing your hands. Doctors at Raigmore hospital are hopeing that their demonstrations will help to “re-educate” patients and visitors on how to keep their hands clean.

Unfortunatley you cannot force someone to wash their hands, using signs can work to gently remind people to wash their hands, for these signs to work effectively please ensure you have placed them in a location where people will notice them and take action.

Here at label source, we supply a huge range of mandatory hand washing signs, ideal for companies to use in their bathrooms, food preparation area or hospitals. If you can can’t find the exact sign you require, feel free to get in touch!