What is Risk Assessment?

A risk assessment is a structured evaluation of what could go wrong during your activities and what you can do to prevent it. For children's activity businesses, risk assessments are not just best practice — they are a legal requirement under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. You need risk assessments for every activity you deliver, every venue you use, and any special events or trips you organise.

The standard five-step approach is: (1) identify hazards — anything that could cause harm, from slippery pool surrounds to emotional risks in competitive situations; (2) identify who might be harmed and how; (3) evaluate the risks and decide on precautions — considering both the likelihood and the severity; (4) record your findings and implement the controls; (5) review and update regularly, and after any incident or change in circumstances.

Risk assessments should be living documents, not paperwork filed away and forgotten. Review them at least annually, after any incident or near-miss, when you change venue or activity format, or when your participant demographic changes. Staff should be familiar with the risk assessments relevant to their sessions and should be empowered to pause activities if they identify an uncontrolled hazard.