Risk Assessment for Making a Board Game in the Woods

Risk Assessment 

Making a board game in the woods at night with year 6 children

When working in the outdoors, outdoor facilitators work in conditions that are dynamic in their environments and high in risk, both perceived and actual (Collins & Collins, 2013). During the evening a dynamic risk assessment continued to take place to ensure all activities were safe. This meant identifying any hazards and assessing their risk to the children and then taking action to reduce/minimise or elminate the risk. It is up to the facilitator to effectively judge a situation and be able to change and adapt a risk assessment (Collins & Collins, 2013). It is a key tool to be able to do this as a facilitator when working in challenging environments, 

Some researchers suggest that we are wrapping children up in cotton wool and should loosen the raines on them a bit more (Jenkins, 2006). Furedi (2002) suggests that parents have become paranoid about what could happen to their child when taking part in an activity they are not in control of, in this process their decision making and judgement have been flawed. Not allowing them to see the bigger picture and what they might potentially gain from the experience. 

This risk assessment shows the risks that may have occurred during the activity of making a board game in the evening with a group of year six. 

References
Collins, L. & Collins, D. (2013). Decision Making and Risk Management in Adventure Sports Coaching. National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education. 65, 72.

Füredi, F. (2002). Paranoid Parenting: Why Ignoring the Experts May be Best for Your Child. Chicago: Chicago Review Press.

Jenkins, N.E. (2006). ‘You can’t wrap them up in cotton wool!’ Constructing risk in young people’s access to outdoor play. Health, Risk & Society. 8, 379-393.