Quality marks you have to be aware of

 With the CE marking on a product the manufacturer ensures that the product conforms with the essential requirements of the applicable EC directives.
The declaration is given by the manufacturer or his authorised representative.

The Kitemark is a UK product and service quality certification mark which is owned and operated by The British Standards Institution (BSI Group). The Kitemark is licensed to the product after BSI has both tested samples of the product against a standard and assessed the manufacturer's quality system to BS EN ISO 9000. BSI continues to monitor both products and production for compliance to standard.

    The Lion Mark shows that a toy conforms British Standard 5665. It is a   mark  of the safety and quality of a toy and can only be used by members of the British Toy and Hobby Manufacturers Association.

This Lion Mark was developed in 1988 by the British Toy & Hobby Association as a symbol of toy safety and quality for the consumer. The Lion Mark may only be used by BTHA members. BTHA Members include many major international and European companies.

Above of this all new plugs must conform to the British Standard Institution requirements, known as BS 1363. Part of this requirement is that the plugs have insulation round the live and neutral pins. If a child accidentally pulls out a plug from the wall when an appliance is in use, the insulation safeguards fingers from getting an electric shock.


With other products you need to check carefully whether or not it conforms to a safety standard. For example a harness on a pram, buggy or push chair should meet the standard BS 6684 - if it doesn't then one which does meet the standard should be fitted.