District H&S Officer Andy Bottoms (Burton on Trent)
General
The basis for Health and Safety in Rotary District 1220 is to be guided by the RGB&I advice from the website, as in most cases, we do not need to duplicate information. The relevant forms can be obtained from the connections below (mostly word docs) or from the RGB&I Website which are mostly in pdf format.
The information available to all Club members involved in running events and necessitates diligence, to ensure they carry out their ‘duty of care’’, to all attending any event, and that they have taken reasonable care and planning, to ensure pertinent safety precautions are sensibly applied.
To assist with members, I have added reference documents below, alternatively go to https://rotarygbi.org/members/compliance/health-and-safety/ where complimentary guidance is also freely available.
If you need to contact me, I am available to provide answers or guidance for your specific events.
Introduction
Rotary clubs in our District carry out many and varied events which are successfully run, in a safe and competent way. The Risk Assessments which are created for these events keeps insurance costs low, but does require everyone involved to take care that this diligence continues. No RA – No Insurance!
This means ensuring that adequate risk assessments are carried out and followed through in order that Rotary maintains a positive image and that no participant, member of the public or any Rotarian suffers as the result of an accident, incident or illness caused by a badly run activity or event.
The main purposes of guidance are:
- to interpret helping Rotarians to understand what the law says and the requirements under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
- to help Rotarians comply with the law.
- to give technical advice.
This guidance is not compulsory, and Rotarians are free to take other action. But if they do follow guidance they will normally be doing enough to comply with the law and Rotary Great Britain and Ireland Policies.
Please refer to the RGB&I website entry https://rotarygbi.org/members/compliance/ for current policies and guidance for all compliance matters.
In particular, insurance reference documents should be reviewed to ensure adequate cover for events.
Continue to organise and run the multitude of events that individual members and clubs run every year, and please ensure that they continue to be safe.
If in doubt seek advice – call me – you know it makes sense.
Guidance
D1220
In general, the same health and safety standards should be applied to voluntary workers as they would to employees, exposed to the same risks…
HSE considers it good practice for “a volunteer user to provide the same level of health and safety protection as they would in an employer/employee relationship, irrespective of whether there are strict legal duties.”
It is essential, therefore, that District 1220 and its member clubs comply with the RGB&I Guidance.
RGB&I’s insurers would look at the level of compliance with these when considering any claims made against District or an individual Club.
D1220 is accountable to the General Council of RGB&I for the implementation of RGB&I H&S Policy in their area. D1220 is responsible for the H&S of their appointed officers, members (whilst employed in Rotary activities) and members of the public affected by their activities.
D1220 is responsible for:
- Completing and maintaining a District H&S Policy
- Appointing a District Contact (the District H&S Officer)
- Where appropriate, ensuring that District Risk Assessments (DRAs) are developed and implemented with Control Measures identified
- DHSO gives annual report to Rotary District 1220 Executive about how many DRA’s were reviewed and to highlight any significant items.
- Providing effective arrangements for communication and consultation with member clubs and their members on H&S matters
District Contact (H&S Officer)
District H&S Officer (DHSO) is accountable to D1220 for the implementation of D1220 H&S Policy, and is responsible for:
- Encouraging the appointment of Club H&S Officers (CHSOs) to consult with the DHSO and ‘the RGB&I Lead Specialist for Health and Safety’ in matters relating to H&S.
- Encourage the completion and maintenance of Club H&S Policies.
- Encourage the development of Club Risk Assessments (CRAs), their implementation and the identification of control measures.
- DHSO gives annual report to Rotary District 1220 Executive about how many CRA’s were reviewed and to highlight any significant items.
- Providing guidance and assistance, where required, to Clubs within D1220
- Ensuring that D1220 fulfils its responsibilities to RGB&I
1220 Member Clubs
Each Club within D1220 is accountable to District 1220 and is responsible, through the Club President and Council, for:
- The H&S of their appointed officers, members (whilst employed in Club activities) and members of the public affected by their activities.
- Appointing a member to be responsible for H&S within the Club (the Club H&S Officer – CHSO)
- Preparing and approving a Club H&S Policy and ensuring that it is reviewed annually
- Preparing and approving Risk Assessments for all activities organised by the Club that affect members and others affected by the activities
- Reviewing annually any RA that is prepared for an event that is repetitive.
- Do Not “re-use old RA” without carrying out a review of the Event & Venue – things change!
- It is recommended that Club H&S Policies are prepared or reviewed and approved at the first meeting of a Club’s Council.
- Clubs review all CRA’s and report to the DHSO, any significant reviews of Club Risk Assessments [CRA’s].
- The DHSO makes an annual report to the District Executive about significant CRA items
Guidance and Assistance
The following documents are available for download to assist Clubs and Club H&S Officers, and to provide information about D1220 H&S matters
Risk Assessment Template District 1220 2024
RGB&I Risk Assessment-Reference-Guide
RGB&I Health & Safety Guidance-March 2023
RIBI R2023 Confirmation-of-Insurance-v1
NOTE: All Clubs need an Accident Book (Retained by H & S Officer or Sec.). This document details what to do in an emergency.
Creating a Risk Assessment
One simple way to identify Hazards, is to take the RGB&I Reference Guide (see above) and circle all the pertinent Hazards listed, for a given event, at a Venue.
Cross out the ones that do not apply.
You now have all the Hazard Headings that should appear in the RA, which need addressing by the RA. (Have a colleague look at it and see if they agree with your choices? Essential Teamwork. Save a record of this planning).
Now work out how to avoid, minimise or carry out the task by a different method, so that that the identified hazard, is not an issue.
Enter this detail into the RA.
At a minimum, within a Risk Assessment it needs to Include :-
- Obtain a copy of the venue’s Public Liability Insurance. (Confirm it is in date!).
- The Location of Emergency Assy Point.
- What Legionella Protection is being exercised? Which company do they use? Date of Last inspection / test?
- Date of the last Electrical test of the venue’s systems? (Company Name) This should effectively include the building Fire Alarms! (If within the last two years)
- If using Car Park, make sure the vehicles and pedestrians are segregated as much as is practicable. Tell the guests (pedestrians) to use paths not the roads.
- When inspecting premises, before the event (an essential task), make sure fire exits are not blocked and that carpets and / or flooring is safe, with no rubbish or trip hazards were observed.
- If your club is serving food, have two club members trained with Level Two Hygiene Certificates. They will know all about Allergens and because of this they can share their knowledge with the Club!
- Event Plan – general notes
- How safe is that event if there is no plan.
- How do you know what is meant to happen? When?
- Who is in charge of the various elements and how would anyone else know?
- How are they contacted?
- What if one of the planners is off and has all the details in their head?
- How do you know that the correct insurance cover, H & S safeguarding, GDPR practices are in place? In the event of an emergency, how do you know what to do? Where are the marshals? Are there any?
- Lost child point? Has this been set up appropriately?
Andy Bottoms
Rotary District 1220 Health & Safety Officer
Rotary Club of Burton on Trent
29 May 2024
