Risk Assessment and Emergency Contact Details 2025

During the year the Garden Visits group has outings to various gardens, mainly in the north of England. Often the gardens are attached to historic properties that we can freely access during the visit or that we can tour as an optional extra. The risks of accident or injury on these visits is low but there are a few points to be aware of as outlined below: -

1. Some of our visits are by coach. All coaches have seat belts and you are requested to use them whenever the coach is in motion. If you do stand up for some reason and/or are putting something into or taking something out of the storage rack then please take care not to drop an item onto a fellow passenger. The main hazard is getting on or off the coach so please mind your footing and use the grabrails provided if necessary.
2. The gardens we visit usually have a path of some kind which can be paved, gravelled, covered in a composite substance, or covered in bark or similar. Sometimes there are areas covered in wood and/or wooden sleepers. Most of these substances can be slippery after wet weather. Many places we visit have wilder areas where we can walk on grassed areas off the path and these are also slippery after wet weather. Historic houses often have old flagstones and stone staircases that are worn through centuries of footfall. Please take care when walking around the sites.
3. Coaches and venues usually also have a first aid kit available. Please contact the u3a organiser for the visit if you require medical assistance.
4. Please carry some ID for yourself and also your next-of-kin information so that there is someone special who can be contacted quickly should the need arise. If you carry a mobile phone then adding a contact called ‘ICE’ (In Case of Emergency) with a contact phone number is recommended. ICE is very widely used and one of the first things emergency services would look for.
5. The organiser will carry a list of member names of those attending the venue for the purpose of organisation and emergency contact. All group leaders have access to their group members on the u3a Beacon system. If you have a mobile phone then it is helpful if you have this number logged on Beacon as part of your membership details and that you carry your mobile phone when on outings. If you do go missing for any reason this provides a chance to contact you.
6. If, for any reason, you decide to cut your visit short, leave the site early, and make your own way home then please tell another member who is staying or the coach driver or the group organiser so that we are not waiting for you at departure time. You will have the organiser’s mobile phone number for this purpose. This is important so that we don’t alert the emergency services to go looking for you unnecessarily.
7. In the unlikely event that you do have a mishap at a visit venue be this to yourself or to site property then this needs to be reported. The group organiser has access to the Incident Form that needs to be completed and lodged with u3a for insurance purposes.
8. Insurance to cover field trips and other u3a operations is provided by Gallagher of Gloucester at National level. A copy of the summary insurance is available upon request but also available from the Member section of our website.
9. Covid restrictions are no longer in force but should this situation change then we shall comply with all u3a, government, venue, or coach requirements.

The above is general information related to any visit that the group undertakes. If there are any particular hazards related to a specific sites that the organiser is made aware of then these will be advised in the pre-visit information document emailed to all members and made available on the website. We might be given additional hazard information on arrival at the venue.