Responsible sharps handling and disposal 

Sharps container: all sharps should be disposed of in a yellow sharps container.

Sharps include:

• pen needles.
• lancets.
• insulin syringes.
• continuous glucose monitor (CGM) inserters.
• insulin pump insertion needles.

School considerations: Discuss with your child’s school how to safely dispose of lunchtime pen needles. School may already have a sharps container, or you may need to provide one. Even if a teacher is supporting lunch time insulin injections, your child should learn how to put the large plastic cap over the used pen needle, before removing it from the pen, to protect the teacher from a possible needle stick injury.

Sharps disposal options:

• Many community health centres offer free sharps container exchange services.
• Some councils provide a home pick-up and drop-off service for sharps containers.

Proper disposal of sharps ensures safety for you, your child and the community. Please follow these guidelines to manage sharps responsibility. 

Page updated January 2026