Background <p>Dispensed medicine labels play a crucial role in ensuring patients use medications safely. Regulations require labels to include essential details, but variations in wording can affect patient understanding and safety. This issue is particularly concerning in paediatrics, where dosing is complex.</p> Objective <p>This study aimed to examine the wording of dosage instructions on paediatric medicine labels dispensed by community pharmacies in the UK. </p> Methods <p>We conducted a cross-sectional study at Evelina London Children’s Hospital over 4 weeks. Researchers analysed patients’ own drugs dispensed by community pharmacies. Data were collected from dispensed medicine labels, including drug name, dosage form, dosage instructions, and pharmacy details. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis.</p> Results <p>We analysed 210 dispensed medicine labels from 70 community pharmacies across the UK and Gibraltar. Dosage instructions were ambiguous in 5.7% of cases, often lacking clarity or using Latin abbreviations. Among dosage instructions, 36.2% omitted an instruction verb, 31.9% used the past participle form, and 82.3% lacked clarity for whole-unit dosing of solid dosage forms. Liquid medicine doses were inconsistently expressed, with 86% of labels lacking details on measurement devices, and only 29.4% of “as needed” medicine instructions providing clear indications for use.</p> Conclusion <p>This study revealed considerable variability in dosage instructions on paediatric medicine labels dispensed by community pharmacies in the UK, increasing the risk of medication errors. Standardising instructions and improving clarity should be a patient safety priority. Future research should explore best practice and user preferences to inform the development of professional standards. </p>