Event signage checklist
A zone-by-zone event signage checklist: feather flags, venue arrows, crowd barrier banners, roller banners, backdrops and toilet signs, planned around production days.
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An event signage checklist is easiest to build zone by zone: the approach, the entrance, the routes around the site, the stage or main area, food and bar, and toilets and safety points. For each zone you ask one question, “what does a visitor need to know here?”, and pick the product that answers it at the right distance. This page walks through each zone with real products, sizes and “from” prices, then shows how to plan the order around production days so nothing arrives late.
Before the checklist: three questions #
Answer these first and the event signage checklist below becomes a shopping list rather than a guess.
- Ground: grass, tarmac or indoors? It decides flag bases and whether stakes can go in.
- Fixings: will there be crowd barriers, Heras fencing, gantries or walls to tie to? Barrier sizes vary between hire companies, so measure one panel before ordering.
- Reuse: if the event runs every year, leave the date off the big items and put it on a cheap Correx board or poster instead.
Event signage checklist, zone by zone #
1. Approach and car park
- Feather flags at the road entrance so people spot the turning: feather flags in 8 ft 6 in (2.6 m) from £137.04, 10 ft 6 in (3.2 m), 13 ft 1 in (4 m) or 16 ft 1 in (4.9 m), single or double sided.
- Venue arrows: venue arrow signs are 550 × 210 mm Correx from £3.96 each. Put the event name above the arrow in large text.
- A1 Correx triangles (1782 × 1001 mm) from £52.49 stand on their own and show the message from several sides.
- Parking and speed: car park and speed limit signs such as Visitor Parking or Drive Slowly, A3 (297 × 420 mm) from £28.97 on Correx.
Lamp post wraps and signs on the public highway usually need permission from the highway authority, so ask the council early. Our street and event Correx range covers arrows, triangles, fence tops and lamp post wraps.
2. Entrance and registration
- Crowd barrier banners: crowd barrier banners in 7 ft 3 in × 2 ft 7 in (2200 × 800 mm) from £59.54, 6 ft 7 in × 3 ft 3 in (2000 × 1000 mm) or 7 ft 7 in × 3 ft 3 in (2300 × 1000 mm), on PVC, PVC-free or mesh.
- Roller banners at the registration desk: roller banners from £65.33 at 850 × 2000 mm. Keep key messages in the top two thirds, because tables and queues hide the bottom.
- Welcome and information boards: event sign boards on Foamex from £29.52 for A3 (297 × 420 mm) show the programme, map and entry rules.
3. Routes and wayfinding
Walk the site as a first-time visitor and put a sign at every point where you would hesitate. Correx boards from £20.88 for A4 (210 × 297 mm) and venue arrows are cheap enough to use generously. Repeat key directions (exit, toilets, first aid point, car park) in both directions of travel, not just on the way in.
4. Stage, start line or main area
- Backdrops: step and repeat banners and stage backdrops from £114.53 for 6 ft 7 in × 6 ft 7 in (2000 × 2000 mm), up to 13 ft 1 in × 8 ft 2 in (4000 × 2500 mm). Repeat sponsor logos small enough that at least two appear in every photo crop.
- Race and festival banners: marathon and race banners and festival banners are 260gsm mesh from £41.21 for 4 ft × 2 ft (1219 × 610 mm). Mesh is the safer choice for gantries and fences in open, windy places.
- Teardrop flags from £146.86 at 6 ft 11 in (2.1 m) keep their shape in light wind, so sponsor names stay readable.
5. Food, bar and stalls
- PVC banners from £38.45 for 4 ft × 2 ft (1219 × 610 mm) across the front of a bar or food stall.
- Printed tablecloths from £176.69 for exhibitor or sponsor tables; measure the table so the cloth drops to the floor at the front.
- Price and menu boards on Foamex from £29.52.
6. Toilets and safety points
- Toilet signs with left or right arrows (Male Female arrow toilet signs) from £4.30 at 150 × 150 mm, in vinyl, Foamex or Dibond.
- A Fire Assembly Point sign from £5.28 for A4, plus No Smoking signs where your risk assessment calls for them.
- Waste and recycling signs over each bin group, from £5.28.
Your event safety plan decides which safety signs you need and where. The HSE event safety pages set out the organiser’s duties in general.
Plan the event signage checklist by production days #
Every product page shows exact working days to dispatch for Saver, Standard and Express, counted from when your order and artwork are confirmed. Courier delivery then usually takes 1 to 3 working days. Standard days for the items above:
| Product | Standard | Fastest (Express) |
|---|---|---|
| Backdrops, step and repeat, crowd barrier banners | 3 | 1 |
| Correx boards, event sign boards | 3 | 2 |
| Roller banners (850 mm), PVC banners | 4 | 2 |
| Feather and teardrop flags, mesh race banners | 6 | 4 |
| Printed tablecloths | 7 | 5 |
| Venue arrows, Correx triangles, lamp post wraps | 10 | 10 |
Work backwards from set-up day, not event day, and add a buffer for artwork changes. Street Correx items take 10 working days whichever service you pick, so order those first. Tick a line on your event signage checklist when the item is ordered and its artwork confirmed, not when the design is finished.
Set-up day tips #
- Match flag bases to the ground: ground spikes for grass; cross, square or water bases for hard ground; a drive-on car base sits under a vehicle wheel. Bases on their own start at £42.70. See how to put up a feather flag.
- Pack spare cable ties, a mallet, gaffer tape and a few blank Correx boards with a marker pen for last-minute changes.
- Bring flags down in strong wind.
- Photograph each zone once it is dressed, so next year’s event signage checklist starts from real pictures.
Not sure whether a banner, roller banner or flag suits a spot? Our comparison of banner, roller banner or flag helps. Banners over 3 m on any side add a one-off £15 oversize charge; street Correx items are exempt. For a full event pack or a tight deadline, send your list through get a quote or call 0161 315 1151.
