The following information is provided for guidance only, and should not be used as a reference for legal requirements.

“Signs must be used, where necessary, to help people identify escape routes, find firefighting equipment and emergency fire telephones.  These signs are required under the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 and must comply with the provisions of those regulations”        

HM government guide 'fire safety risk assessment'.

The signs below are coloured as for photo-luminescent signs, which absorb energy and glow in the dark.

A full range of signs can be obtained online at: www.mfs-fire-extinguishers.co.uk

 TYPES OF ESCAPE ROUTE SIGN IN GENERAL USE:

EEC sign

British Standard sign

A third design of sign is preferred by the NHS which is similar to the BS version, but includes flames.

There has for many years been confusion over which of the above designs is correct. Technically both types are acceptable (although there should not be a mixture in the same premises) however the EU has now accepted ISO 7010 (the BS type) as the 'preferred' design and although technically this does not 'outlaw' the 'EEC' signs it could be difficult to justify their use in a court of law where it is claimed that people 'had difficulty' finding their way out, and the EEC signs could have 'contributed' to that. In a recent fatal fire, a large organisation is rumoured to have settled such a claim out of court for a rather hefty sum. Our advice would be to always use British Standard signs.

The reason for this ridiculous situation emanates back several years when the 'EEC' version was wrongly included in the Health & Safety directive (No 341 1996) for fire safety signs.

The reason why the EEC sign is not recommended is that in recognition surveys (carried out in accordance with ISO 9186) only about  40% of people realised what it meant whilst the BS design scored around 65%, with the NHS version topping the list at around 80%.

ELEMENTS of ESCAPE ROUTE SIGNS:

Apart from a few exceptions listed below, every escape route sign should incorporate 3 elements, a graphic symbol (running man), directional arrow and supplementary text.

Directional arrows should be provided 'wherever confusion might otherwise occur, except where this could cause confusion, e.g. vomitory exits within sports stadia or storey exits opening directly onto a half landing; and within a cinema, theatre or similar auditorium where the escape route signs are internally illuminated, the arrow element of the signs may be omitted when the signs are sited immediately above the exits'.

In other words, directional arrows are required in all but the above scenarios, even on the final exit which up to the 2000 revision did not.

Graphic symbol,

Front lit

Graphic symbol,

Back lit

Directional

Arrow

Supplementary

Text

MEANING of SIGNS

Progress forward, forward and through or forward and up from here

Progress to the left from here

USE of SUPPLEMENTARY TEXT - Every escape route sign should include supplementary text to assist in the understanding of the sign.

EXIT - Used to indicate the conventional route leading out of a building.

FIRE EXIT - Used to indicate an escape route provided specifically to be used in the event of an evacuation.

EXIT for emergency use only - Similar to FIRE EXIT, but should not be used close to FIRE EXIT signs. They should also be used instead of FIRE EXIT and STAFF ONLY or PRIVATE signs together, which could cause confusion.

INCORRECT

CORRECT

SIZE of SIGNS

"Signs should be sufficiently large and clear so that they can be easily seen and understood"

Safety signs and Signals Regulations 1996

Luminescent signs can be seen more easily than plain signs, and can therefore generally be smaller.

The following sizes are in mm, and are for guidance only. Sizes should be assessed on the above criteria in each individual case.

LOCATION of SIGNS

Signs should be located in the normal field of vision, and should be prominent, taking precedence over all other signs, ie they should not have to ‘compete’ with other signs

FIXING HEIGHTS (From floor to base of sign)

Over doors & open spaces: 2 – 2.5m to the base of the sign;

Wall fixed: 1.7 – 2m to the base of the sign.

Large open spaces such as factories and warehouses: as appropriate.

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