What does BS 8510 vs BS EN 16781 mean on an older sleeping bag?

What is BS 8510:2009, and what replaced it?

SGS United Kingdom (18 September 2020) states that EN 16781 supersedes the older BS 8510, which is now withdrawn. Bolton Consultancy dates the story: BS 8510:2009 was the British sleep-bag standard published in 2009; EN 16781:2018 was published in 2018 and built on those requirements, with alignment to clothing-industry practice.

On a used bag you may still see BS 8510:2009 on a sewn-in label. That line tells you which standard the maker claimed at the time of manufacture. It does not tell you the bag has been re-tested to EN 16781, and it is not a GOV.UK recall notice.

What did EN 16781 add that 8510 did not cover in the same way?

Quote dates and scope only. Bolton Consultancy sets EN 16781:2018’s scope as sleep bags used in the children’s sleeping environment, for children up to the age they can climb out of a cot (about 24 months). It lists design, mechanical and physical hazards, chemicals, hypothermia and hyperthermia, thermal resistance, fire, hygiene, marking, labelling and instructions, and packaging. SGS’s public summary of EN 16781 includes tog, neck-opening size, small parts, fasteners, threads, looped labels, fillings, cords, chemicals, burning behaviour, washability, and user information on choosing insulation.

Why do Vinted and Marketplace bags still show 8510?

Sleep bags last for years. A bag made while BS 8510:2009 was the current claim can still be on a second-hand site with that label intact. Which?’s September 2020 tests are the public record of what that transition looked like in the shops: the lab used extracts from the 2018 standard on every bag, including some manufactured to the earlier standard, so the results could be compared.

Two maker replies in that Which? piece are the ones parents still meet on labels. Babycurls said the sample Which? bought had been independently tested in 2017 to BS 8510:2009 and made in early 2018, before the new testing standard was introduced. JoJo Maman Bébé said the tested bag was manufactured under BS 8510:2009 and that failures Which? reported were new requirements in the revised standard, during a stock transition.

What did Which? find on 2018 stock that had passed 8510?

Which? (7 September 2020) tested 15 bags. Twelve failed at least one of their tests against the 2018 standard. Failures included neck openings wider than the 2018 limit, missing instruction warnings (including not to use with other bedding), loop-label position, loose threads, and tog readings above the claimed grade. Which? wrote that some products featured were manufactured to an earlier standard, but all were measured against the 2018 rules for a fair comparison.

That is a lab comparison from 2020, not a recall list, and not a verdict on the bag in your hands today. Official records do not ask MayTally to call a used 8510 bag “fine” or “not fine”. They give you the dates, the withdrawn status, and — if you want a current marking — the Lullaby Trust’s current code: BS EN 16781:2018.

What does a printed 8510 tell you — and what does it not?

• It tells you a claimed standard at manufacture. SGS: that standard is withdrawn and superseded by EN 16781.
• It does not tell you the bag was re-tested to 16781. Which? showed 2018-era stock that makers said had been built to 8510 and then failed later neck and instruction checks.
• It is not a recall listing. Recalls sit on GOV.UK against brand, model and batch. Do not treat “8510” as a product-safety alert code.
• It is not a SIDS rating. The Lullaby Trust says there is no safety standard related to SIDS. A British Standard is about tests such as construction and burning, not sudden infant death.

In shortSGS: EN 16781 superseded withdrawn BS 8510. Bolton dates 8510 to 2009 and EN 16781 to 2018. Which? recorded 2018 stock that had been made to 8510 and then failed newer neck and instruction rules. A used bag showing 8510 is not a recall, and neither code is a SIDS rating.