Outdoor Learning Risk Assessment
Starter risk assessments for fieldwork by water, a beach visit and adventurous activities run by a provider. Pick the template, then add your site, tide times and the provider's details.
Starting points – Check every row against your school's policy and the venue's own risk assessment, and add what is specific to your group.
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This supports, but does not replace, your school's or employer's policy. The visit leader, EVC or head teacher must check and approve it.
Water margins and beaches
Most school fieldwork near water is "water margin" activity: pond dipping, river studies or rock-pooling where pupils stay at the edge or in shallow water. Your school or local authority policy will say how deep pupils may go (often no more than knee height) and what staff need, such as a throw line and someone trained to use it. Check tide times for the coast, look at the site before the visit, and set clear boundaries that pupils can see.
Adventurous activities with a provider
Pick "Adventurous activities" in the template list. When a provider runs caving, climbing, trekking, skiing or water sports for under-18s, check whether the activity needs a licence under the adventure activities licensing scheme and that the provider holds it (see HSE: adventure activities licensing, which has a provider search). Read the provider's own risk assessment, tell them about pupils' needs in advance, and agree who does what: instructors lead the activity, but school staff keep pastoral responsibility for the group. Adventurous activities should be planned and approved beforehand, not added on the day.
Before
- Check the site, access and where the nearest help is
- Check tide times, river levels and the forecast
- Check the provider's licence, insurance and risk assessments
- Brief pupils and adults on boundaries and "challenge by choice"
- Pack spare clothes, a first aid kit and a throw line (if trained)
On the day
- Recheck conditions before starting; agree a stop signal
- Staff between pupils and the water
- Head counts after every activity
Afterwards
- Wash hands; report incidents
- Note changes to the site for next time
Running a regular session in your school grounds or a local wood? See the forest school risk assessment.
Keep pupils' details out of it
Write "Pupil A" or initials, and say where the confidential plan is kept ("held by the visit leader"). Names, medical details and contact numbers belong in the school's own system, not in a risk assessment that gets printed, emailed and left on a coach seat. Everything you type here stays in this browser.
Sources and further reading
- HSE: School trips and outdoor learning activities – tackling the health and safety myths
- HSE: adventure activities licensing
- OEAP National Guidance (oeapng.info)
- DfE: Health and safety on educational visits
- Going Out There (Scotland)
We link to these so you can read the original guidance; we haven't copied it. Check for updates, and follow your school's or local authority's own policy where it says more.
Questions teachers ask
Do pupils need to wear buoyancy aids for pond dipping?
Not usually for water margin work where pupils stay at the edge, but follow your school's or local authority's water policy, which sets the limits and when buoyancy aids or extra qualifications are needed.
How do I check an activity provider is licensed?
HSE's adventure activities licensing pages include a search for licensed providers. Ask the provider for its licence details and its own risk assessments as part of your planning.
Who is in charge during an activity run by a provider?
The provider's instructors lead the activity itself; school staff stay with the group and keep pastoral responsibility. Agree this in writing before the visit.