How can generic risk assessments for educational visits help?
Generic Risk Assessments should help all those responsible for the organisation and leadership of educational visits by: • raising awareness of possible hazards and control measures that might have previously not been considered; • promoting recommended good practice; • providing information that can easily be shared with, and adapted by, all leaders (and group members) to ensure a common understanding of expected standards and responsibilities during a visit. Generic Risk Assessments should therefore help to: • protect young people, by highlighting ways of improving safety standards on educational visits; • safeguard leaders from the threat of litigation, by providing clear written evidence of the risk assessment and management measures that have been taken (as required by law); • save considerable time and effort, by providing an initial framework of ideas for discussion (rather than starting with a blank sheet of paper! – it is generally easier to cross out the suggestions that may
