What changed from the original chart, beyond the age range. The
Resuscitation Council UK updated its guidelines at the end of 2025, and three things in common
circulation are now out of date: call 999 for any unresponsive person before assessing
breathing, not after; an AED can be used at any age including infants,
and an adult AED is better than none; and paediatric first aid training now teaches five rescue
breaths then 15:2 rather than the older sequence. The resuscitation chapter covers this properly.
The vital sign ranges have moved to their own page so they can cover adults as well — school staff, visitors and parents are on the premises too, and a chart that stops at 17 is not much use when the person on the floor is a member of staff. Vital signs, all ages, printable.
Common situations
| Situation | Equipment and action |
|---|---|
| Cuts, grazes, minor bleeding | Gloves, dressings, plasters, wipes, saline |
| Splinters | Tweezers, cleansing wipes, plasters |
| Nosebleeds | Gloves, gauze, sick bowl. Lean forward, pinch the soft part for 10 minutes without checking |
| Bumps and bruises | Instant cold pack |
| Minor head knock | Pen torch, cold pack, observation. See the head injury note below |
| Sprains and strains | Cold pack, support bandage, sling if needed |
| Suspected fracture | Splint, triangular bandage or sling, cold pack |
| Headache | Thermometer to exclude fever, quiet observation |
| Nausea, vomiting, stomach ache | Sick bowl, thermometer. Persistent right-sided pain needs a doctor |
| Feeling faint or fainting | Lie flat, raise legs. BP and pulse during or immediately after, SpO2, foil blanket |
| Asthma, mild to moderate | Own inhaler and spacer, peak flow, SpO2. Sit upright — never lie a wheezing child flat |
| Mild allergic reaction hives, itching, no breathing or circulation involvement | Prescribed antihistamine, observation. Watch breathing and voice continuously — see the anaphylaxis chapter for when this stops being mild |
| Minor burn or scald | Cool running water 20 minutes, burn dressing, cling film loosely. Not ice, not butter, not gel-first |
| Insect sting or bite | Scrape the sting out sideways rather than gripping it, cold pack |
| Eye irritation or foreign body | Saline irrigation, pen torch. Do not remove anything embedded |
| Knocked-out adult tooth | Hold by the crown, not the root. Reimplant if possible, otherwise store in milk. Time-critical — dentist same hour. Full detail in head injury |
| Menstrual issues | Sanitary products, heat or cold for cramps, quiet space |
| Panic attack or hyperventilation | Calm space, coached slow breathing. SpO2 to reassure and to exclude hypoxia. Not a paper bag |
| Dehydration or heat exhaustion | Cool space, fluids, thermometer |
| Fever or feeling unwell | Thermometer, observation, and a low threshold for the rash check below |
| Diabetic hypo, known diabetic | Glucose meter, own kit, fast-acting sugar, recheck at 15 minutes |
Uncommon but serious — decide about 999 now, not later
| Situation | Equipment and action |
|---|---|
| Anaphylaxis | Adrenaline auto-injector into the outer thigh, lie flat with legs raised, 999. Repeat at 5 minutes if not improving. See the chapter |
| Severe asthma attack | Own or emergency salbutamol with spacer, sit upright, SpO2, 999 |
| Seizure | Cushion the head, time it, nothing in the mouth. 999 if over 5 minutes, repeated, first-ever, or injury |
| Severe hypoglycaemia or DKA | Glucose meter, recovery position if drowsy, 999. Nothing by mouth if not fully alert |
| Cardiac arrest | CPR immediately, AED as soon as it arrives, 999. Any AED, any age. See the chapter |
| Choking | Encourage coughing; then back blows and abdominal thrusts. 999 if not cleared — and after any abdominal thrusts, they need checking regardless |
| Major trauma or heavy bleeding | Direct pressure, trauma dressing, gloves, 999. Pressure that has stopped bleeding should not be lifted to look |
| Serious head injury or concussion | Pen torch, do not move unnecessarily, observe, 999. Any loss of consciousness, repeated vomiting, worsening headache, confusion or seizure means hospital |
| Suspected spinal injury | Keep still, do not move, 999 |
| Heat stroke | Aggressive active cooling, thermometer, 999. Confusion with a high temperature is the distinguishing sign |
| Acute abdominal pain / appendicitis | Thermometer, observation, urgent referral. Nothing by mouth |
| Testicular torsion | No equipment treats this. Recognise it, hospital immediately — the window is a few hours |
| Meningitis or sepsis signs | Thermometer, glass test. The rash appears late and may never appear — do not wait for it. 999 |
| Poisoning or overdose | Keep the packaging, 999 or 111. Do not induce vomiting |
| Stroke, rare at this age but not impossible | FAST check, 999. Do not delay anything to take a reading |
| Mental health crisis or self-harm | No device. Trained safeguarding and pastoral staff, and the referral pathway. Stay with them |
Reading a single-lead ECG
The trace patterns, what a consumer device can and cannot tell you, how to get a recording worth reading, and which devices are worth buying, now have a chapter of their own: single-lead ECG and low-cost monitors. For a school medical room the summary is short — a device reading is a line for the handover ("the monitor flagged atrial fibrillation"), never an on-site diagnosis, and the algorithms are built on adult data.
Key contacts — fill these in before you print.
Medical room extension · site emergency or duty phone · school nurse ·
Ambulance 999 · NHS non-emergency 111 ·
Poisons information via 111.
Equipment supports a trained first aider's assessment. It never replaces trained staff and it never replaces calling 999. This is a planning and reference aid, not a clinical protocol — verify it against current guidance from your school nurse, local authority or medical advisor before relying on it, and reassess whenever anything changes.