The construction industry mourns the demise of Bob the Builder’s yellow hard hat

It is a sad day for building sites. Thanks to new guidelines introduced by Highways England, the quintessential symbol of hard graft, the yellow hard hat, is to be thrown in the skip. Black, white, orange and blue are the new yellow, say the rules — according to the builder’s seniority.

The days of the traditional helmets are numbered, however, after the country’s biggest construction companies agreed a new colour-coded scheme for headwear — which does not include yellow.

The guidelines for the construction industry have been adopted by Highways England, which will insist that all staff and contractors ditch their yellow hats during work on motorways and A-roads from the start of next year.

The Safety Helmet Colours and Training Standards have been developed in response to the Construction Leadership Council recommendation to specify and promote card schemes carrying the CSCS logo.

“Both the Safety Helmet Colours and Training Standards provide clear and practical help for everyone working on-site, showing that by improving our working relationships and using our collective voice, we can make a real difference to the industry”.

Suzannah Nichol, Chief Executive of Build UK, said: “Health and safety is a priority for Build UK and we are delighted with the positive response from our members who have welcomed the latest standards, which aim to make life easier and help them meet the increasing demands of working on-site.

Trained first aiders and fire marshalls will also have stickers on their helmets.