Safety and Risk Management

• Safety and Risk
  • Real Risk
  • Perceived Risk
• Risk Management
  • Risk Reduction Strategies
  • Risk Identification
  • Risk Management
  • Program Plan
• References

Forms are available on the Forms page.

Safety and Risk

• Risk is an integral part of taking groups into an outdoor setting. It may include psychological, emotional, physical or social elements and the aim of teachers and leaders must be to manage and minimise risk and limit accidents to a level associated with everyday living.
• The Australian Standard, Risk Management AS/NZS 4360 – 1999 defines risk as:

  The chance of something happening which will impact on objectives. It is measured in terms of consequence and likelihood.

• Risk can be divided into:
  • Real - where participants could be injured: e.g. rockfall, river crossing, and
  • Perceived - which is an individual's subjective assessment of the real risk present at any one time

• All activities have a level of risk but different people will have a different perception of what that level is

Many outdoor education programs deliberately include activities where participants perceive an element of risk but where the real risk can be minimised.

To ensure that the activity is safe yet a challenging and enriching personal experience, the level and type of risk must be managed appropriately. With that responsibility comes the temptation to completely remove all types of risk and to ensure safety; the potential result, however, can be to limit the learning outcomes and to detract from the experience of the individual.

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Risk Management

The Department of Education's primary Risk Management has important information on this subject.

Risk Reduction Strategies

Effective methods of reducing real risk include:

• having appropriate rules and policies both at a Departmental and school level that provide advice and guidance - See Operations Manual
• employing leaders with excellent interpersonal skills and appropriate leadership styles
• knowing the students and their capabilities
• developing students’ skills in a sequential program
• developing safety consciousness in the group, in the leadership and in the school
• ensuring the leader has appropriate technical skills for the activity
• providing sound, well-maintained and appropriate equipment
• making the participants aware of risks and how to manage them
• planning carefully and thoughtfully.

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Risk Identification

Risks associated with any activity or program should be identified. These may include psychological, emotional, physical or social elements and all should be considered in the planning process.

N.B.

Hazard - A hazard is something with the potential to cause harm. A hazard alone though does not constitute a risk, there must also be something at risk.

Safety - Safety and risk are inversely proportional. If you reduce safety, you increase risk and vice versa.

Risk Management

Planning should include the following steps:

• identify the main areas of risk (see above).
• analyse the main causal factors, (See Risk Assessment Forms) viz:
  • people—leadership, skills, experience, qualifications, physical fitness, tiredness, professional development
  • equipment and resources—clothing, quality, availability, special safety equipment, vehicles …
  • environment—weather, height of cliff, nature of terrain, depth of river, width of road, amount of traffic …
• for each causal factor, work out strategies to minimise the risk to an acceptable level.
• include an emergency plan in case anything goes wrong See Emergency Action Guide.

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Program Plan

The final plan for the Outdoor Education excursion or program will include the risk management component, providing an educational, challenging, enjoyable yet safe experience for the students and staff. For planning forms see: Forms.

References

For further detailed information on Risk management contact:

Armin Howald
Senior Consultant (Risk Management)
Department Of Education
116 Bathurst Street
Hobart 7000
Phone: (03) 6233 7290
Fax: 62 33 2437

Standards Australia
"Guidelines for Managing Risk in Sport and Recreation"
Standards Australia International Ltd
GPO Box 5420
Sydney NSW 2001

Outdoor Safety Institute
PO Box 11-23
1 Manners Mall
Wellington New Zealand
Phone: (04) 385 1146
Fax (04) 385 9680
E-mail osi@risk.net.nz

Managing Risks in Outdoor Activities
Mountain Safety Manual 27 can be purchased from NZ Mountain Safety Council

For more information see:

• Accident Reporting
• Risk Management and Insurance
• Personal Accident: Volunteers

Claim forms for department staff are available on the staff intranet.

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