2.1

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Know the key factors that influence health and safety in sport
The health and safety of sports participants is in the spotlight more now than it has ever been. This unit gives learners knowledge and experience that can be used to help promote a culture of health and safety in sport. This unit develops learners’ awareness of the importance of health and safety legislation, regulations and legal responsibilities of all those working in sporting situations. In addition the opportunity to investigate major sporting disasters the legislation that followed.



P1

 * describe** **FOUR** legislative factors that influence health and safety in sport

Legislative Factors

 * Legislation or Statute law:** //‘The act of making or enacting laws.’//

A **Green Paper** preliminary report on proposals for a new law to be discussed in Parliament. This report is then proposed, debated and amended in the House of Commons. If successful, a **White Paper** is devised and constructed that lists all the information about the law and sets out what the Government is minded to put in a forthcoming Bill. Finally if successful, these proposals become part of legislation, an Act of Parliament or **Statute law**.

A second development of law, is case law. Laws made by the courts interpreting cases and law, as opposed to law made by an Act of Parliament.

**Regulation:**
Regulation is the governmental function of controlling or enforcing law.


 * An enforcing authority:** An organisation that makes sure people adhere to the laws, including employers, employees and clients.

For example the __[|Football Licensing Authority]__ is responsible the health and safety at football stadiums and is in conference with ‘Stand up sit down’ on the standing at football matches issue. The Health and Safety Executive is the enforcing agency for many Health and Safety Laws such as the Health and Safety at Work Act.

One of the most important factors of any health and safety legislation is to establish a degree of **‘duty of care.’** Within health and safety a definition of **‘duty of care’** suggest that employees and employers have a duty to take all reasonable measures to ensure people will be safe. A lack of care could be regarded in law as **negligence.** Negligence is defined by the requirement for people to:

//‘take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour.’//

OR

//‘Careless conduct that causes injury or death to another.’//

Health and safety legislation does not impose an absolute duty on employers to avoid all accidents to either employees or to others but rather **to identify the risks involved and to take reasonable precautions to prevent injury and ill health.** However, a number of professional athletes and clubs have been sued in court following serious injury. One of the key areas of prosecution has been __negligence,__ as in Case Study 2.1.1.

The Health and Safety Executive
The Health and Safety Executive is responsible for making adequate arrangements for the enforcement of health and safety legislation in the UK. In fulfilment of its duty, the Executive provides guidance to its regulatory staff who have to judge whether measures put in place, or proposed, by those who are under a duty to control and reduce risks '//as low as reasonably practicable'// (ALARP), are acceptable.

Health and Safety at Work Act (1974)
Before 1974 approximately 8 million employees had no legal safety protection at work. The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) provides the legal framework to encourage high standards of health and safety in places of work. It protects employees and the public from work activities.

Everyone has a duty to comply with the Act, including employers, employees. Specificall employers must;
 * Provide and maintain safety equipment and safe systems of work.
 * Ensure materials used are properly stored, handled, used and transported.
 * Ensure staffs are aware of instructions provided by manufacturers and suppliers of equipment.
 * Provide a safe place of employment.
 * Provide a safe working environment.
 * Provide a written safety policy/risk assessment.
 * Look after health and safety of others, example public.

Employees' have specific responsibilities too. They must;
 * Take care of their own health and safety and that of other persons. Employees may be liable.
 * Co-operate with their employers.
 * Must not interfere with anything provided in the interest of health and safety.

1 Legal Notices - Written document requires person to do/stop doing something. a. Improvement: say what is wrong and how to put right within a set time. b. Prohibition: prohibits use of equipment/unsafe practices immediately. 2 Prosecution - Both employers and employees face prosecution. a. Maximum £5000 in Magistrates' Court b. Unlimited fine and jail in Crown Court.
 * Enforcement action**

At the National level it is the Health and Safety Executive that enforces the Act, at the local level it is the Local Authority Environmental Health Officer or EHO who is the enforcement officer and who is initially there to give advice and explain the rules.
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

RIDDOR
(Report of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulation 1995), RIDDOR was developed to enhance reported incidents from required employers and others concerned. It also dictates that the employers have to record any disease’s that may occur inside or out of work. By doing this it allows the enforcing authorities to distinguish how and where risks occur and examines serious incidents. They do this because they want to diminish the likeliness of the accident reoccurring.

Health and Safety Executive. For the HSE guide on RIDDOR click [|here].
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

PPE
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is defined in the regulations as //'which is intended to be worn or held by the person in the workplace, which will protect him/her to one or more risks in the workplace to their health and safety.'// The main requirement of the PPE at the Workplace 1992, is that personal protective equipment is to be supplied and used at work, wherever risks to health and safety cannot be adequately controlled. Allowing the correct type of PPE to be chosen, carefully considering different hazards in the workplace. This will enable you to assess which types of PPE are suitable to protect against the hazard and the job to be completed.

Q What PPE would be used to control working with the following hazards; dust, vapour, gas, chemical splash and spray?

The HSE are responsible for enforcing the correct use of PPE in the workplace.
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

COSHH

 * The Control of Substance Hazardous to Health (COSHH)** Regulations of 1988, consolidated in 1994, amended in 1996,1997, 1998 and 1999 and further consolidated in 2002 are the main piece of **legislation** covering control of the risks to employees and other people arising from __exposure to harmful substances__ generated out of or in connection with, any work activity under the employer's control.

Review the **SEVEN** statements below, **FIVE** are true but **TWO** are are in-correct. Can you identify the red herrings?


 * COSHH** requires employers to:
 * assess the risks to health from chemicals and decide what controls are needed;
 * carry out experiments to see which chemicals are the most dangerous;
 * use control measuress and make sure employees use them;
 * make sure the controls are working properly;
 * inform workers about the risks to their health;
 * when working with chemicals, always wear protective equipment;
 * train workers.

For the HSE guide on COSSH click [|here].
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**
 * Health and Safety Executive**

Safety at Sports Grounds Act (1975)
Sports stadia with a spectator capacity of more than 10,000 people are designated by the government and must be certified under the Safety at Sports Grounds Act 1975. A general safety certificate will cover use of the stadium for certain specified activities, use for other spectator related purposes will require the issue of a special safety certificate. Any non-designated sports ground which contains a stand with a spectator capacity of more than 500 is deemed a regulated stand and must be certified under the Fire Safety and Safety at Places of Sport Act 1987.

Requirements in relation to sports grounds are far reaching and will include but will not be restricted to the following:-
 * Structural integrity of the stand/stadia. || Provisions for means of escape. ||
 * Adequate fire precautions. || Emergency services co-ordination. ||
 * Provision of suitable management strategies ie. stewarding and evacuation procedures ||


 * To prepare a Safety Certificate it is necessary to**
 * Request suitable drawings from the applicant.
 * Survey the ground in detail.
 * Hold Safety Team Meetings with the Emergency Services to determine overall requirements.
 * Consult with other expert/other interested bodies etc.
 * Seek structural, electrical, mechanical and any other pertinent certification.
 * Consult with ground management.
 * Determine works conditions and numbers of spectators to be permitted into the ground.

Under the legislation the Local Authority has ongoing control and powers of enforcement so as to ensure reasonable standards of safety are maintained. For example, Southampton City Council.
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

Manual Handling Operations Regulations (1992)
//'More than a third of all over-three-day injuries reported each year to HSE and local authorities are caused by manual handling - the transporting or supporting of loads by hand or by bodily force.'//

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 (MHO) came into force on the 1st January 1993. The Manual Handling Operational Regulations set specific **legal** **requirements** to ensure that employees undertaking manual handling operations at work, avoid the risk of injury. These regulations place a specific **duty of care** on the part on both employers and employees. Under the regulations, manual handling is regarded as any transporting or supporting of a load, including lifting, sitting down, pulling or pushing, carrying or moving, by hand or bodily force. The HSE guidance document to the Regulations contains detailed advice and guidance on how to assess, what to assess and possible risk reduction measures.

For the HSE guide on Manual Handling click [|here].

Q What are the responsibilities of the employer? What must the avoid, assess and reduce? Q What are the duties of the employees? Q In sport or the sports industry might an athlete or an employee have to use the correct manual handling skills?

The Children’s Act (1989)
This act is of major importance as many of the sports industries products are aimed at the younger generation. It aims to stop all abuse to children but this doesn’t just mean physically. This may also include sexual abuse, neglect and emotional abuse. Part of this Act recommends that employee working with children obtain a CRB check to ensure the safety of children within sport, however the Act does not make theses checks compulsory.

The Main Principles of the Act are:
 * the welfare of the child is the paramount consideration
 * wherever possible, children should be brought up and cared for within their own families
 * parents with children in need should be helped to bring up their children themselves; this help would be provided as a service to the child and his family and should:
 * be provided in partnership with the parents;
 * meet each child's identified needs; be appropriate to the child's race, culture, religion and language;
 * be open to effective independent representations and complaints procedures;
 * draw upon effective partnership between the local authority and other agencies, including voluntary agencies.

Children should be safe and be protected by effective intervention if they are at risk of significant harm. In respect of children, courts should ensure to avoid delay, and may only make and Order if doing so is better than taking no order. The views of children should be sought according to their age and understanding and should be informed about what happens to them. Parents continue to have parental responsibility for their child, even when they are no longer living with them. Importantly parents should be kept informed about their children and participate in decisions made about their child’s future.

Management of Health and Safety Regulations (1999)
The first management regulations came into force on 1st January, 1993. They were revised and finally fully updated into the 1999 Regulations. They expand upon the general duties within the Health & Safety at Work Act for employers to manage health and safety. The **Manual** **Handling** Operations Regulations 1992, as amended in 2002 (‘theRegulations’) apply to a wide range of **manual** **handling** activities, including lifting,lowering, pushing, pulling or carrying. The load may be either inanimate - such as a box or a trolley, or animate - a person or an animalRegulations’) apply to a wide range of **manual** **handling** activities, including lifting,lowering, pushing, pulling or carrying. The load may be either inanimate - such as a box or a trolley, or animate - a person or an animal

Again the HSE are responsible.
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

Fire Safety (1975) and Safety of Places of Sport Act (1987)
The 1975 Act and the 1987 Act are concerned with the safeguarding of spectators at sports grounds, but not with risks inherent in participation in the sporting activity or with safeguarding employees. Following various major accidents at Sports Grounds, the need to control the fabric and management of sports grounds became apparent and the provisions of the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 placed this control with Local Authorities. The Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sports Act 1987 made it a duty of Local Authorities to enforce the Acts.

Following the **fire at Bradford FC,** covered stands which would accommodate over 500 spectators came under a similar control to that afforded to major football grounds and large stadia designated by the Secretary of State Lord Taylor, in his report on the **Hillsborough disaster,** recognised the need for building control to take a major role in the safety of Sports Grounds and went on to lay down procedure to ensure the participation of all emergency services and other interested parties.

HSE and your local authority.
 * Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body**

Adventurous Activities Licensing Act
The Adventure Activities Licensing Authority is an independent, cross-departmental public authority, funded by the Department of Education and Skills, and operating under the written guidance of the Health and Safety Commission. In effect it is an independent watchdog on the delivery of outdoor adventure activities for young people. The licensing scheme arises from the tragedy at Lyme Bay in 1993, which involved a commercial organisation assuming responsibility for children's safety and then discharging it negligently. For more information visit the [|AALA website].

In this case the **Enforcing Agency or Regulatory Body** is the AALA.

Confirm your understanding:

Q What is a law? (statutory, civil law, case law); Q What is loco parentis and duty of care? Q What is negligence?

Case Study 2.1.1
'Family Demands Enquiry into Son's Death'

The grieving family of a talented young footballer killed in a horrific training-ground accident today demanded a fully inquiry into his death. Former Stewart's Melville College prize-winning pupil Craig Gowans, an apprentice player at Falkirk Football Club, was electrocuted last July when training equipment he was carrying touched an overhead power cable at the club's training ground. Read more at the [|Scotmans News.]

Q What was the outcome of the hearing? Q Which enforcing agencies or regulatory bodies were involved?

Bradford Fire Disaster
During the Bradford City fire 11 May 1985 many supporters ran onto the pitch with their hair and clothes on fire. One supporter said ‘//it was like death was hunting us.’ [|Read news reports and listen to eye witness testimonies at the BBC].// Q How long did it take for the fire to take hold, note the time between when you first see smoke and when spectators start streaming on the pitch?

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Make sure your investigate the findings of the [|Popplewell Report].

Post and share your findings in 2.1 discussions.

Hillsborough Stadium Disaster
April 15th 1989, saw the worst disaster in the history of English football; 96 Liverpool fans attending their team's FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday's ground, Hillsborough, were crushed to death on the Leppings Lane terrace, and English football would never be the same again. There are a number of excellent resources, [|The University of Liverpool Factsheet]and the BBC [|On this Day] and perhaps most striking are the [|Hillsborough Disaster page] and an interview from a [|surviving father].

Post and share your findings in 2.1 discussions.

Lyme Bay Disaster
The deaths of the four teenagers in the Lyme Bay canoeing tragedy in March 1993 will be remembered for a very long time by many people, not only family and friends, but also those involved in the outdoor activity community. The canoeing tragedy itself was the result of a series of errors and circumstances, which the Devon County Council report states //[|'quite simply, should not have happened.']//

Post and share your findings in 2.1 discussions.

2.1 Learning Support
The HSE is a vital resource provider. The BBC covers the **TWO** football diasters comprehensively but also provides audio and video footage.
 * Student Tips**

M1

 * compare and contrast** the influences of legislation, legal factors and regulatory bodies on health and safety in sport.

For M1 investigate major sporting diaster. Importantly **compare and contrast** the influences of legislation, legal factors and regulatory bodies on health and safety in sport. Primarily, review what happened as a result the statutory laws in place at the time (or lack or them) and the case law and subsequent statutory laws that followed. Share your research in the discussion rooms to develop your assignment.

[|Health and Safety Blockbuster Quiz]

IM Learning

 * Please change your ID to your Wiki login. Only use the IM learning forum for learning conversations.**

P2

 * describe** the legal factors and regulatory bodies that influence health and safety in sport.