Achievements & Performance : At Leisure
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| Play should be "as safe as necessary, not as safe as possible". |
Leisure and Accident Drowning Data
RoSPA has been at the forefront of the campaign to provide better data on water-related fatalities. Through the National Water Safety Forum Information Group, the Society has now developed the first nationally agreed statistics, which show 680 drowning deaths in the UK in 2005 – 435 of them accidental.
The National Water Safety Forum has become established as the pivotal point for water safety co-ordination in the UK and is not only working on its own projects, but is carrying out research for other agencies. The national water safety conference held in Stratford-upon-Avon in October was the most successful so far and was used to further promote the Forum. In light of several drownings involving young people, a call was made at the conference to raise concerns about the low level of water safety education in schools.
In partnership with other organisations, RoSPA has been involved in developing better guidance for coastal public rescue equipment. This links with RoSPA’s work with ISO – the international standards organisation – on safety information both in the UK and abroad.
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Lifeskills – Learning for Living has become the first safety centre to receive accreditation through a RoSPA and Department of Health scheme. |
Learning About Safety by Experiencing Risk – LASER
Success has been achieved in establishing LASER – Learning About Safety by Experiencing Risk – as a concept that can be used in a variety of ways to promote risk education. Interest has grown throughout the UK and overseas, with countries such as Korea and Japan seeking information. With funding from the Department of Health, RoSPA has developed the LASER Accreditation Programme to sustain best practice and develop new ways of delivering accident prevention messages. Systems for Permanent Centre and Annual Accreditation are now in place for use by schemes.
A forum for those interested in or working within LASER has been established and held its first meeting in December with more than 60 people attending.
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RoSPA was in demand from the media and promoted the idea of "sensible safety". |
Playgrounds
RoSPA continued to promote the policy that children’s play should be “as safe as necessary, not as safe as possible”. Without exposure to risk when they play, children will fail to develop fully or will simply seek risks in unmanaged settings that are far more likely to cause serious injury. The idea of exciting and stimulating play areas with high play value was encouraged by staging the 2nd International Play Safety Conference at Loughborough University in June. This used the theme Ensuring Play Value, following the announcement of lottery funding for play provision in places of greatest need.
RoSPA’s play safety team has been exporting its expertise to assist other nations develop the type of robust attitude to safety seen in UK playgrounds. Work has been undertaken in Iceland and Bulgaria, where government interest in the subject is high. The South Korean government has passed new playground safety laws as a direct result of RoSPA’s influence.
More and more playgrounds benefit from the Society’s inspections. Sites include open-access playgrounds, indoor play centres, skate parks, BMX tracks, parks, playing fields and open spaces in public and private ownership. The continuation of the Play Quality Awards scheme recognises the efforts of play area operators to provide high standards.
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RoSPA helped with the Old Market Square redevelopment in Nottingham city centre. |
Provision of Consultancy and Audits
Auditing and consultancy work at a wide variety of water and leisure sites both at home and overseas helps to provide a safer environment for visitors and tourists. RoSPA has been called on to assist with high profile schemes such as the Millennium Dome redevelopment at Greenwich Peninsula, the Old Market Square redevelopment in Nottingham city centre and auditing the Caravan and Camping Club Travel Service in France and Italy. By providing clear safety information and water-edge protection where necessary, those responsible for tourist attractions and recreation facilities can help visitors to make informed decisions about risk and hazard exposure.
Raising awareness of holiday safety issues is an important role for RoSPA. In partnership with Holiday Which? the Society carried out a survey of beach water sports operations in the Mediterranean and highlighted a number of concerns which will help tourists to spot potential problems.
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RoSPA is a registered charity: Registered Charity No: 207823 Patron: Her Majesty the Queen RoSPA Head Office: Edgbaston Park, 353 Bristol Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B5 7ST, UK |
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