Risk Assessments are essential for every activity whether that be doing crafts in the HQ or parascending at a local airfield. Despite what most people might think, risk assessments are a great enabler for participating in adventurous activities as they allow you to rationalise and explain how something that, at face value might sound quite risky or unsafe, is a perfectly acceptable activity. Of course they also force us to consider how we keep all adults and young people safe which should always be our number one priority.
However here’s a few guiding principles and tips
- Do share your risk assessment with everyone involved with running the activity.
- Do review an old risk assessment and see if it needs updating or adapted.
- Do show your risk assessments to your line manager or someone else for advice.
- Do ensure the risk assessment is shared with all young people and adults taking part.
- Don’t be afraid to change a risk assessment on the fly (a dynamic risk assessment) but make sure everyone is informed of what has changed and why.
- A risk assessment can be aural but it should still be written down and it filed securely ready for next time or in case something goes wrong. There is a facility in OSM to store and share risk assessments and we strongly recommend all leaders use this facility or the space provided for each group and section on Sharepoint/Teams .
- For nights away experiences and adventurous activities you will be asked to submit your risk assessment accompanied with the notification before the event takes place.
