Risk Assessment Policy
INTRODUCTION
Hope House Haiti (UK) is a Christian Organisation and registered UK Charity, working in Haiti. It is committed to safeguarding the welfare of its volunteers as far as possible whilst protecting the reputation of the organisation and its charitable status. Hope House Haiti (UK) gives due consideration to current British Foreign Office and Commonwealth Office advice and complies with this advice when arranging trips. Hope House Haiti (UK) recognises that its work involves potentially dangerous situations, and wants those involved to be clear about their responsibility with regards to trips to Haiti
A risk assessment is a careful analysis of an activity, its environment, the people involved and any possible event that could go wrong causing harm to individuals involved, and documenting them is a requirement under the management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The aim is that precautions and control measures are put in place ensuring the greatest level of protection, reducing significantly the chance of accident, illness or injury. With regards to Hope House Haiti (UK), risks will vary significantly depending on whether it relates to undertaking a fundraising event in the UK, or sending a mission of volunteers out to Hope House, Haiti.
A risk assessment is a careful analysis of an activity, its environment, the people involved and any possible event that could go wrong causing harm to individuals involved, and documenting them is a requirement under the management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The aim is that precautions and control measures are put in place ensuring the greatest level of protection, reducing significantly the chance of accident, illness or injury. With regards to Hope House Haiti (UK), risks will vary significantly depending on whether it relates to undertaking a fundraising event in the UK, or sending a mission of volunteers out to Hope House, Haiti.
ACTIVITY
A risk assessment of the proposed activity will be carried out by the Trustees, or if a mission trip by the Administrator, considering the objective of the activity. They will seek to:
- Identify the hazards
- Identify who might be harmed and the degree of severity
- Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions
- Record and implement findings
- Review assessment and update if necessary.
REVISION
Risk assessments should be reviewed and revised annually, or if there is reason to suspect the assessment is no longer valid. This may be as a result of accidents or near misses, safety complaints, ill-health trends, or the charity becoming aware of a change in circumstance. All significant findings should be recorded and brought to the attention of the Trustees and volunteers impacted.
TYPES OF RISK ASSESSMENT
Specific Risk Assessments. Cover a specific activity as a one off - use risk assessment template.
Generic Risk Assessments. Acceptable when activities/processes/operations are consistent across the workplace and over time. For Hope House Haiti (UK) activities, the Trips Risk Assessment form is to be used as the starting point for mission trips to Haiti, and the Sponsored Walk Risk Assessment form is to be used for sponsored walks.
Dynamic Risk Assessments. These are on the spot assessments of the situation/task that are not written down. These should not be relied upon completely for a task, as there is no written evidence of the control measures in place. Dynamic Risk Assessments will not be accepted by HSE in any accident investigation, but can be noted in a full risk assessment as an ongoing assessment of the risk.
Generic Risk Assessments. Acceptable when activities/processes/operations are consistent across the workplace and over time. For Hope House Haiti (UK) activities, the Trips Risk Assessment form is to be used as the starting point for mission trips to Haiti, and the Sponsored Walk Risk Assessment form is to be used for sponsored walks.
Dynamic Risk Assessments. These are on the spot assessments of the situation/task that are not written down. These should not be relied upon completely for a task, as there is no written evidence of the control measures in place. Dynamic Risk Assessments will not be accepted by HSE in any accident investigation, but can be noted in a full risk assessment as an ongoing assessment of the risk.
