Accident/Incident Reporting 

Accidents or incidents which result in injury, loss or damage should be notified promptly to Unity Insurance Services. Telephone at an early stage and Unity Insurance Services staff will advise you what needs to be done. In addition to the information in this leaflet, see P.O.R. chapter 11. 

There is an excellent fact sheet (FS 120079 Accident Reporting) available from the Info Centre at Gilwell Park on the subject of accident reporting. Other useful fact sheets cover a pre-event check list (FS 120080 Pre-event Checklist) and home contacts (FS 120078 Home Contacts).  

Safety and Risk Assessment 

One dictionary definition of the word ‘accident’ is an ‘event happening by chance’. Inevitably, despite the greatest care and preparation, accidents can and do happen. All too often, however, what some call an accident can be attributed to a failure to properly assess the risk and to act accordingly. 

It is significant that comparatively few accidents happen during adventurous activities, whilst one third of all notified accidents occur in or around the Scout Group Headquarters and another third happen on campsites. 

The simple truth is that we all recognise the dangers in dangling a Scout twenty-five metres up a rock face. We insist that those leading such activities be properly qualified and publish guidance on techniques and safety. Troop night, however is accorded little attention. 

Why do we fail to see the obvious? To an extent it is a case of familiarity breeding contempt. How many Group Headquarters can identify the following: 

Tables, chairs and other ‘hard’ equipment stored in the main hall where games are played. 

Fixtures/fittings which protrude from the walls (fire extinguishers, window sills etc.). 

Slippery vinyl flooring (a particular hazard when it is wet.) 

Or at camp: 

Open fire cooking with containers balanced on unstable platforms. 

Boiling water placed outside the dining shelter to cool down. 

Use of a rope ‘swing’ set up by previous campers. 

Some of the most serious ‘accidents’ reported to the Association are attributable to a total failure, by a Leader, to think through to the potential consequence of their action. Consider the following recipe for disaster: 

Take a one gallon aluminium dixie, a single burner gas cooker and a trestle table. Set them up in the dining shelter on a campsite and bring the water to the boil. Now add several boisterous Cub Scouts around the table...... 

It wasn’t an ‘accident’. The results were obvious to anyone who thought about it!

Some hazards are, of course, harder to predict. The Scout Movement is well known for its ability to scrounge potentially expensive items and many well meaning companies or individuals will donate equipment. Our ‘accident’ files contain many examples of injuries caused by such an item as the humble fire extinguisher (more often noted for being empty when needed), and there is a recorded case of a Cub Scout being impaled on the springs of an armchair donated for the comfort of the Scouters’ room! It really should not need saying but any equipment bought secondhand or donated should be carefully checked for safety. This is especially true if it contains liquids or gasses under pressure or whose combustion can cause toxic fumes or if it is electrically powered. A ‘freebie’ is not worth it if it ends up costing someone their life. 

Nearly all Scout Counties/Areas have a ‘Safety Co-ordinator’ who can offer advice and, increasingly, Headquarters is providing risk assessment models and tools for your use. We do not need to become ‘slaves’ to paperwork. However, a simple assessment may stop a painful incident from happening. 

Think safety! Most ‘accidents’ can be prevented if someone had stopped long enough to consider the potential. When planning activities and camps, look critically at the programme. Appoint a safety officer and consider the ‘safety checklist’. A risk assessment fact sheet (FS 120000 Risk Assessment) is available from Gilwell.