The health and safety of our members is of the utmost importance to Bristol SU. 

As a group leader you have a responsibility for the safety of your members, as well as your own.  All of the policies and procedures we have in place are here to ensure you comply with your duty of care when running your activity and to protect you and the activity leaders, members, public, Bristol SU, and University.

The important things you need to do are:

• Plan
• Manage the risks- see below for all information and templates
• Tell us when something goes wrong  - accidents, incidents and near misses should be reported on this form.
• Seek advice from Bristol SU, if you need it

If you're ever in any doubt about what to do please get in touch.

Risk Assessments

For all activities and events, you will need to complete a risk assessment. Please see our Guidance notes before submitting any forms, as you may be asked to re-do them if they are not suitable for your event (or filled out properly).

Please use this risk assessment template:

• Risk assessment template

Once the documents are filled out, they can be emailed to bristol-su@bristol.ac.uk. 

Insurance

Public liability insurance 

This policy covers the University’s and the Union’s legal liability to third parties (i.e. students, visitors or members of the public) for death, injury or damage to their property.  The limit of indemnity is £50m for any one accident. A letter providing confirmation of the University's Public Liability cover can be dowloaded from the University website:http://www.bristol.ac.uk/secretary/insurance/#Liability

Travel insurance

If your society/sports club is going abroad please ensure your members are aware that Bristol SU does not provide travel insurance and they will need to arrange this themselves.  If travelling within the EU (plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) you can get free or reduced-cost emergency treatment with a European Health Insurance Card - visit www.ehic.org.uk.  However, this will not cover the cost of getting you home after an accident, or insure your possessions, so you and your members will still need to take out travel insurance.

Equipment

If you have equipment stored within the Union (or another university building) then it should be covered by the University’s property insurance.  However, be aware that the excess (the amount you have to pay if you make a claim) is £5,000.  The limit of any one item is £100,000 and the limit for any one claim is £250,000. Please keep your equipment list up to date and inform the Student Services Team once a year at Handover. If you would like to take out contents insurance (with a lower excess) for your society/sports club equipment please contact the Student Services team.

Reporting Accidents and Incidents

At the time of the accident or incident please report it to the appropriate officials (if appropriate) e.g. sports venue staff, event organisers etc.

Please report the accident /incident to the Student Services team within 24 hours or as soon as is practicable by filling in this form.

Serious accident or incident and emergencies

In the event of any serious accident or incident which involves the Emergency Services or which could involve media attention please follow this procedure:

• Ensure the safety of yourself then the group.  
• Call the Emergency Services if necessary and ensure before you call that you are able to explain exactly where you are. You will also need to give them your name, the number from which you are ringing and a brief summary of the incident including possible injuries and the number of injured.  Where possible treat any casualties if it is safe to do so. 
• Contact University Security (see below) as soon as possible.   
• Do not make any statement to the media other than “no comment”. DO NOT discuss any aspect of the incident with anyone who is not connected with the emergency services.  

It is the responsibility of the trip leader and vehicle driver to ensure that all participants are aware of the actions to take in the event of an emergency.

Reporting to University Security

University Security operate 24 hours a day 365 days a year. If  the accident/incident is serious, or its emergency, it must be reported immediately to University Security on 0117 331 1223. Inform security of the following information:

• Your name and where you are calling from
• The name of the society/sports club/activity involved
• A brief description of the incident – where, what, how
• The name(s) and numbers of students involved in the accident/incident
• The name of the hospital where any casualties have been taken
• The name and number of any police officers in attendance 
• University Security will ensure that the necessary action is implemented.