Staffordshire County Scouts
Safety in Scouting

County Executive Committee - Consultative Document

Wednesday, 12 November 2003

GENERAL MANAGEMENT STATEMENT OF SAFETY POLICY

The Scout Council fully accepts its responsibilities to achieve high levels of health, safety and welfare of its members and the health and safety of others affected by its activities. We are also conscious of our moral obligation to those in our care to provide a safe environment and we are committed to strive towards creating a 'total safety culture' within the provisions and support of Staffordshire Scouting.

The Trustees and Commissioners are committed to discharging their statutory and legal obligations in a manner that protects the health and safety of its members, volunteers, employees, the public and contractors. In addition to complying strictly with the health and safety measures required by legislation, it is the Councils policy to promote and take all reasonably practicable steps to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of its members, volunteers, employees and others who may be affected by its actions.

To meet the requirements of this policy the Trustees and Commissioners will work with all volunteers, employees and other relevant parties to strive for continuous improvement in health and safety performance. They will operate an integrated, structured and documented system of management control over all its operations. This system of control commits the Council to:

• The undertaking of appropriate reviews and assessments of its operations and undertakings to measure progress, manage risk, and ensure compliance with this policy and that of the Scout Association.
• Maintaining safe and healthy systems of work to protect all employees, volunteers, members and others, including the public.
• Ensuring that its volunteers and employees are fully competent to perform the tasks allocated to them by careful recruitment, ongoing development, and by provision of the necessary resources.
• Maintaining the health and safety awareness of all employees and volunteers by the establishment of sound health and safety practices. Prime responsibility for these matters lies with us the Trustees and the County Commissioner and his Team; all other employees and volunteer leaders equally have responsibility for matters within their control. They have a duty to ensure that health and safety issues are given the fullest consideration at all times, and for providing a safe and healthy working environment for their employees and members, leading to continuous improvement in health and safety performance.
• To establish, document and maintain safe systems of scout activities to ensure these are carried out in a safe environment.
• To ensure the safe use, handling, storage and transport of " articles and substances " which are inherently or potentially hazardous to health
• To give such information, instruction, training and supervision as is reasonably necessary for the establishment and maintenance of safe systems for scout activities.
• To ensure that persons not being members of the Scout Association are not exposed to hazards from any activities being undertaken. To ensure that premises which are used for scouting do not give rise to any hazards to those who use such premises.
• To assess the risk: to health and safety of members and others to which they are exposed whilst involved in scouting activities. To identify the measures needed to minimise risk.
• To encourage members of the movement at all levels to develop an awareness of health and safety as an integral part of their activities
• Ensuring that the contractors we engage are competent to perform the work contracted and encouraging good safety practice within such companies in compliance with this policy.
• Effective response to and investigation of accidents and incidents and, to establish where appropriate root causes and take reasonable actions to prevent their reoccurrence.

To achieve this, the Council will work within the policies and procedures laid down by The Scout Association, and encourage and support Districts in so doing. The Commissioners will provide information to, and ensure appropriate consultation with, employees and volunteer leaders on matters relevant to this policy.

In addition all employees and members have a responsibility to themselves and others for the safety and prevention of ill health at work. We must all work together in the spirit of participation and co-operation to ensure the success of this Policy.

Adopted by the County Executive Committee on . . . . . . . 2004


Application of Policy

This policy applies to all its members, operations and premises and provides for the management of health and safety throughout the organisation in Staffordshire.

This policy statement will be reviewed annually and updated or amended as necessary. It is signed by the Chairman.

This policy statement will be brought to the attention of all the members whenever it is revised and to any other parties, such as contractors, thought to require such information The Executive will allocate sufficient resources in terms of time and/or finance to enable these aims to be met.

Without detracting from the primary responsibility of the Executive and District Commissioner for ensuring a safe method of' scout activities, the Executive will provide a competent advisor to advise on health and safety matters where this is necessary to assist them to meet these aims.

No safety policy is likely to be successful unless it actively involves people themselves, the Executive remind all members of the movement of the responsibility to take care of their own safety and the safety of others and ask: for co-operation with the Executive so as to able them to carry out its responsibilities.


RESPONSIBILITIES

The County Executive Committee

The County Executive is an autonomous legal entity performing a dual role as Charity Trustees and support to the District Commissioner. Legal responsibilities for ensuring compliance with safety policy in both capacities exist. The County Executive will exercise overall policy control over the ongoing development, implementation and review of this policy.


County Chairman

The County Chairman shall be responsible for the overall management control of the safety system and co-ordination of activities. A County Safety sub-committee reporting to the Executive will operate as the management advisory group.


County Safety sub-committee

The responsibilities of the Safety sub-Committee are:

1. To advise on the implementation of The Association's Safety Policy.
2. To provide information, instruction, training and support with the object of ensuring the health and safety of all those involved in Scouting activities or whom they may affect.
3. To develop and information, instruction, training and support on heath and safety law, risk assessment and on the type of preventative and protective measures necessary.
4. To develop good practice guidelines to ensure safety and the absence of risks to health in connection with the use transport storage and handling of equipment and substances, which are inherently or potentially dangerous?
5. To monitor activity authorisation processes within the County.
6. To provide a forum for the monitoring and moderation, of the work of County Activity Assessors to ensure a coherent pattern and standard of activity authorisations.

District Executive Committees

The District Executive is an autonomous legal entity performing a dual role as Charity Trustees and support to the District Commissioner. Legal responsibilities for ensuring compliance with safety policy in both capacities exist.


District Chairmen

Local responsibility for the management of the Safety Policy of the Association rests with the Chairman of the District Executive Committee


District Commissioners

District Commissioners are responsible for the implementation of the policy in their own Districts using wherever appropriate, the codes of practice and instruction sheets issued as bulletins in the safety manual and those contained in the National Policy and Organisation Rules issued by Headquarters.

District Commissioners will:

• be directly responsible for the operation of the health and safety programme within their own district.
• ensure that the responsibility for health, safety and welfare are properly assigned, accepted and understood at all levels in their district and that they are fulfilled.
• institute safety training and re-training as appropriate.
• ensure that all members of the organisation in their district are fully aware of their own responsibilities for accident prevention and carrying out activities in safe conditions and their responsibility for the safety of others.
• ensure that all accidents in their district are reported and recorded in the appropriate accident book.

Health and Safety Advisor

The Safety Advisor is responsible for providing an information and advisory service to the County Executive Committee and Chairman on all matters related with health and safety. This service is in addition to and not in substitution for arrangements the Executive choose to adopt to fulfil their responsibilities.

The Safety Advisor shall monitor the safety performance and compliance and give advice on any areas where improvements may be possible. Such monitoring will include site inspections, accident/dangerous occurrence data collection, processing and investigation, and safety system auditing.

The Safety Advisor will assist in organising any necessary safety training of all levels of members, he will also promote to all members awareness of health, safety and welfare by all possible means open to him.

The Safety Advisor will liase with any outside bodies interested in the Executives health and safety function. Such bodies may include the Health and Safety Executive, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, and Local Authority Health and Safety and Environmental Departments. He/She will also liase with Health and Safety Advisor of the Scout Association.

The Safety Advisor shall be entitled attend all Safety Committees in an advisory capacity.


Members of the Scout Association

It shall be the duty of every member taking part in any scouting activity:-

1. to take reasonable care for the health and safety of himself/herself and of other persons who may be affected by his acts or omissions whilst taking part in any activity.
2. observe all safety rules and procedures at all times.
3. make full use of any safety equipment and protective clothing provided for special activities.
4. report all accidents, and hazardous occurrences whether persons are injured or not to the appropriate Leader as soon as possible after the event.
5. conform to the Scout Association safety policy as outlined in P.O.R.
6. enter all accidents in the appropriate accident book.

Contractors, Subcontractors and Self-employed Persons

Must conduct their activities when employed on any scout premises/site in accordance with the requirements of all current health and safety legislation, British standards, Approved Codes of Practice and Health and Safety Executive guidance. All contractors must provide a copy of their organisations safety policy to the Leader/District Commissioner/Camp Warden or other relevant person together with details of their safety arrangements for compliance with the legislation


Competent Persons

The Executive will ensure that there are competent persons to assist the organisation in undertaking the measures to comply with the requirements imposed upon them by legislation i.e. Safety Advisor Fire Brigade, Corgi, other contractors etc. Without limiting the generality of the above, the Executives Safety Advisor will always be presumed to be a "competent person" by virtue of his/her appointment.


Safety Bulletins

Will be subject to consultation with the County Safety Committee (except those issued by the Scout Association) The provision of any safety bulletin shall form the basis by which that area of activity shall be conducted. Copies of safety bulletins shall be given to all persons concerned with supervising the activity.


Signed





Miles Matile - County Chairman

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