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Health and Safety on Educational Excursions
Introduction
1. Participants can derive a good deal of educational benefit from taking part in excursions organised under the auspices of their local authority, especially through schools. In particular, they have the opportunity to undergo experiences not available in the classroom or other learning environment. Visits help to develop a participant's investigative skills and longer visits in particular encourage greater independence. This guidance is designed to help all those involved in organising educational excursions to ensure that those taking part stay safe and healthy. It is directed towards staff in schools; those leading community education groups; social services staff; countryside rangers; leisure and recreation staff; sports development staff, and similar activity co-ordinators who may be involved in organising and leading educational excursions. The guidance may also be useful to staff in the further and higher education sectors who may be involved in organising and leading similar excursions.
2. The guidance does not seek to replace local or other professional guidance or regulations. Where appropriate, local authorities should be the first source of advice. The booklet offers national guidance where guidance from elsewhere may be unavailable, incomplete or not up to date. It is based on material prepared by the Department for Education and Skills following wide consultation and reflects and collates existing good practice.
3. Most educational excursions take place without incident and it is clear that excursion leaders are already demonstrating a high level of safety awareness. But, following a number of tragic incidents involving young people, there is a continuing concern amongst local authority staff and parents to continue to improve safety on excursions. The potential hazards which the booklet refers to should not discourage excursion organisers. No amount of planning can guarantee that a visit will be totally incident free, but good planning and attention to safety measures can reduce the number of accidents and lessen the seriousness of those that do happen. The management of health and safety on excursions is part of any establishment's overall policy on health and safety. The guidance sets out principles, rather than trying to cover every eventuality, leaving it to leaders' professional and local judgement how to apply those principles.
4. This guidance supersedes the Department's Circular 10/94 Safety in Outdoor Activity Centres: Guidance.
5. The booklet does not cover work experience, which is treated in separate guidance ( see Annex A for details). References to 'parents' cover anyone who has parental responsibility.
6. This guidance should not be taken as an authoritative interpretation of the law. That is for the courts.
7. Crown copyright. This booklet is produced by the Scottish Executive Education Department and draws heavily from the booklet Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits produced in 1998 by the Department for Education and Skills. Extracts, including the model forms in Chapter 11, may be reproduced for non-commercial education or training purposes on condition that the source is acknowledged.
8. This guidance and its three supplements Standards for Local Authorities in Overseeing Educational Excursions, Standards for Adventure, and A Handbook for Group Leadersare available to print and download from www.scotland.gov.uk and www.parentzonescotland.gov.uk. Further printed copies of this guidance and the supplements are available free on request from the Scottish Executive Education Department, Schools Division, Victoria Quay, Edinburgh, EH6 6QQ, telephone 0131 244 0943.
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