First Aid Kits

Legal Requirements and BS 8599 Compliance

The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 place a legal duty on employers to provide adequate first aid provision. There's no fixed list of what you must stock – instead, you conduct a first aid needs assessment to determine what 'adequate' means for your workplace. BS 8599 is the British Standard that guides kit contents. Low-risk offices need basic supplies; high-risk sites (construction, manufacturing, food processing) require additional items like burn gel, calcium gluconate gel, and saline solution pods.

Key Selection Criteria: Matching Kit to Risk Level

Your first aid kit contents depend on three factors: number of employees, nature of work, and identified hazards. Common mistakes include underestimating the need for hypoallergenic wound dressings (critical for staff with sensitive skin or latex allergies) and failing to stock low adherence dressings for burns or fragile wounds. Many buyers also overlook single use ice packs for impact injuries – instant activation means no freezer required.

First aid kit items to evaluate based on your assessment:

• Sterile plasters (assorted sizes, including tiny round plasters for fingertips)
• Low adherent dressing pads for burns and abrasions
• Absorbent dressings for heavy bleeding
• Medical tape and conforming bandages for securing dressings
• Sterile saline pods and eyewash pods for eye injuries
• Instant ice cold packs for sprains and impact trauma
• Hypoallergenic dressings and adhesive dressings for wounds

Maintenance and Replacement

Sterile items carry expiry dates – typically 3-5 years for wound dressings and plasters. Check kits every 3-6 months and replace used or expired stock immediately. Dressing absorbent pads, non stick wound dressing packs, and saline wipes degrade if stored in damp or excessively hot conditions. Body fluid spillage kits and sharpsafe disposal bins require separate restocking protocols; these aren't part of standard first aid kit at work requirements but are essential in healthcare, labs, and any environment handling sharps or biological hazards.

Specialist Additions for High-Risk Work

Construction, metalworking, and chemical handling introduce specific risks. Calcium gluconate gel treats hydrofluoric acid burns – a workplace-specific hazard that standard burn care doesn't address. Sports cold packs suit active environments where impact injuries are frequent. Anchor plasters and large adhesive wound dressings handle bigger wounds common in manual trades. If your assessment identifies these risks, your kit must reflect them. The HSE guidance (L74) is clear: provision must match identified need, not a generic checklist.