Health and safety on educational visits
Advice on organising educational visits can be found in the Department's 1998 good practice guide Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits.
A three-part supplement to the good practice guide was produced in 2002:
- Standards for LEAs in Overseeing Educational Visits sets out the functions of the educational visits co-ordinator in schools and the levels of risk management that Local Authorities and schools could use.
- Standards for Adventure is aimed at the teacher or youth worker who leads young people on adventure activities.
- A Handbook for Group Leaders is aimed at anyone who leads groups of young people on any kind of educational visit. It sets out good practice in supervision, ongoing risk assessment and emergency procedures.
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Group Safety at Water Margins is aimed at anyone who organises learning activities that take place near or in water, such as a walk along a river bank or seashore, collecting samples from ponds or streams, or paddling or walking in gentle, shallow water.
From time to time it may prove necessary to amend these documents. If you have any suggestions for improvement or additions, please email them to martin.elliott@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk
Health and Safety: Responsibilities and Powers was sent to all schools and LEAs in December 2001.
Guidelines have been issued on the roles of school staff, including support staff, on visits.
Licensing Incidental Drivers of the School Minibus states that school staff driving the minibus are exempt from the D1 PCV requirement but should be given appropriate training.
Whilst we recommend that school staff should seek to resolve internally any disagreement about health and safety management affecting pupils, we recognise that staff may believe a safety risk has not been adequately dealt with. Staff have a right, in such a circumstance, to raise such concern about risk management and not get into trouble for doing so. The law protects them when they make a disclosure if it tends to show, for example, a danger to the health and safety of an individual. Employees can disclose their concern to a manager, or their employer, or the Health and Safety Executive. They can even go to other outsiders in certain circumstances.
School Trips — Glenridding BeckThe Health and Safety Executive has produced a comprehensive report on the lessons learned from the tragic death of Max Palmer on a school visit to Cumbria in 2002. The report praises the professional care of most teachers and others when planning and leading visits. It also flags up the immense benefit of outdoor education when based on proper risk management.
The report speaks positively about the guidance published by the Department and which is available above and highlights ten vital questions that should be answered before an educational visit takes place.
New Verification Scheme for School Trip Providers
A new verification scheme has been announced for providers of non-adventurous activity type educational visits. The School Travel Forum (STF) 'Assured Member' scheme provides an effective means for teachers to comply with the current good practice advice on selecting suitable providers set out in HASPEV and its supplements as adopted or adapted by local authorities. The STF website, has full details of the scheme and awide variety of useful information and links for group leaders. The site also carries a full list of Assured Members, which enables schools to easily verify the status of a tour operator displaying the 'Assured Member' logo. Leaders can also make use of the STF's advice line on all matters relating to school travel arrangements.
