All of Nature Days's advisers are experienced first aiders, are qualified teachers, have received risk assessment training, are A level examiners and coursework moderators and are CRB checked. Nature days has public liability insurance to provide a range of educational experiences.
Dawn Thomas is one of our senior advisers and has over 10 years experience as a field studies provider and advisor. She is Forest school trained and has a range of countryside management skills.
Here are some of Dawn's qualifications:2008 - Rescue Emergency Care First Aid training Level 2 2008 - Attended FSC weekend course on Strategies for Geography Fieldwork within the new AS/A2 Specifications
1996 - BSc Environmental Biology at Swansea University Codes of conduct and practice.
I would like to draw your attention to a couple of key sections from Nature Days' health and safety policy (based on OfEE guidelines and County Council policy). "It is the duty of Nature Days to ensure that all activities are designed to take account of health and safety, however if a teacher insists on overriding my advice, it becomes their responsibility." The minimum ratio of children: adults is set down in Health and safety regulation,however the nature of the activity or the pupils, may sometimes require higher adult numbers. Nature Days leader needs to be excluded from that ratio.It is much safer if the field tutor is the guide, the facilitator. not seen as an extra adult, responsible for counting heads etc. "The ultimate responsibility for supervision lies with the visiting members of staff, as Nature Days do not know the children and therefore cannot be held responsible for discipline and control." Nature Days will risk assess sites and activities and make these available to client groups, but will make it clear that teachers etc. are charged to make their own assessments and need to add to the RA, any concerns over the behaviour or fitness of the group. (a) If any of the children have any specific needs, medical, behavioural etc. that could affect the H&S of the group Nature Days need to be briefed. (b) The number of adults and children that you are sending on the trip. (c) If any member of staff is a first aider. (d) Any child without carer consent, or medical form cannot attend; The school must collect these all in, and the medical forms must be bought on the trip. (e) If a child has asthma their medicine must be checked on the bus, if they have forgotten it they cannot attend. (f) Nature Days requires the number of the school contact with whom we can liase throughout the trip. This person must have the contact details for the whole group.
(g) The children must have food and drink, and the adults should carry some spare and have means of cleaning the children's hands after the toilet or before food. (Toilets are the bushes, they should be aware of this). (h) If the children do not have waterproof coats and sensible shoes, they should not attend the trip. This also applies to sun hats in the summer. Can the teachers carry suntan lotion in the spring and summer months. AND in the winter, 5 layers at least are required, t- shirts x3 and jumpers 2, and woolly hats). NB. Nature Days have a few spare waterproofs. Wellies are not always the best,rather sturdy shoes that can be wet and muddy. Please check the equipment list for your field visit for details. It would also be advisable for every one to wear long trousers and for the teacher in charge to bring some spare cloths in case of accident. (i) In advance of the trip groups must be decided and adults allocated to them (do not include Nature Days leader as a head counter), Each group leader must have a full register. (j) The teacher in charge must have carried out a risk assessment and be familiar with the key hazards. Nature Days will send you their RA summary, but this doesn't mean that you shouldn't carry one out yourselves. In advance of the trip brief the adults and the young people of the risks involved. (k) The young people must be briefed that if behaviour is not acceptable they will have to be removed from the group and the expense of this met by the school or parents. (I) Because of the nature of the terrain, I feel I have to Nature Days draws your attention to the extremely unlikely possibility of Lymes disease. More information available on request and when a booking is made. (m) There may be weather conditions where the activity needs to be cancelled on H&S grounds; if this is the case trips will be rearrange. All policy documents are available on request.
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