Published 15 Feb 2023
What is a School Risk Assessment?
A school risk assessment is a systematic inspection that identifies and controls hazards within school premises. Beyond complying with legislative requirements, school risk assessments are conducted by school management teams to ensure a healthy and safe environment for students, teachers, administrators, and other staff.
School Risk Assessment Template
A school risk assessment template is used to identify hazards in the school environment and their associated risks. Campus management can use this simple risk assessment template for schools to assess existing control measures in secondary and primary schools and determine solutions to ultimately protect the students and faculty. Use the following points below to utilize SafetyCulture (iAuditor) for school risk assessments:
- Identify any hazards present within school premises
- List down affected people (e.g. students, teachers, administrators, and other staff)
- Evaluate how these people might be harmed
- Determine the existing procedures and evaluate if it follows safe working practices
- Assess whether the existing controls are enough or recommend further action needs
- Assign action needs to appropriate personnel
- Sign off with a digital signature and timestamp to validate the assessment
Download sample PDF report for a primary school risk assessment example.
In this article
- What are the 5 Steps of Conducting the Assessment?
- Example
- FAQs About School Risk Assessment
- How to Conduct a School Risk Assessment
- Featured School Risk Assessment Templates
What are the 5 Steps of Conducting the Assessment?
School risk assessments are conducted regularly to identify the likelihood of injury to a person after being exposed to a hazard and examines whether existing control measures are sufficient. A basic school risk assessment generally asks the following key questions:
- What are the hazards identified?
- Who might be harmed?
- How they might be harmed?
- What are the existing precautions? – Is it enough to control the hazard?
- What further actions are needed to eliminate the hazard?
These questions make it easier for the school management team to evaluate the hazard associated with school activities and identify needed control measures.
Example
Conduct a school risk assessment without missing any of the 5 steps. Ensure school staff and admin go through each key question for better risk analysis and recordkeeping. Here’s an example of a school risk assessment:
FAQs About School Risk Assessment
It is a type of risk assessment performed specifically in schools, especially for primary and secondary academies. During this process, potential hazards and risks in the surrounding environment are identified and evaluated to determine the likelihood of harm to students, staff, visitors, and anyone else who uses the facilities.
Some common examples of situations that require a risk assessment in schools include field trips or off-site activities, science experiments, physical education, and sports activities. However, performing school risk assessments regularly can help ensure the safety of all occupants, not just during these activities.
Risk assessments in schools can be performed by health and safety officers, teachers and other school staff, as well as external consultants or experts. The exact individuals responsible for conducting the assessment, however, should be determined based on the school’s existing guidelines and the specific situation at hand.
How to Conduct a School Risk Assessment
Carrying out paper-based school risk assessments can be time-consuming and inefficient instead of helping implement sensible school safety measures. It is burdensome for management team to check all records and collect data to review and update when an accident occurs.
Using a mobile software platform like SafetyCulture (formerly iAuditor) to manage risk assessment for schools can streamline your processes when conducting school risk assessments. All completed assessment reports are automatically saved online with unlimited cloud storage and access. Easily login to your online dashboard to review collected data and monitor the effectiveness of controls being implemented.
Featured School Risk Assessment Templates
Laboratory School Risk Assessment Template
Laboratory School Risk Assessment Template is used to identify potential hazards when conducting laboratory experiments. It is used by teachers and laboratory technician to evaluate the risk level and provide control measures to mitigate the risk. Use the following points below to utilize this form:
- Do a walkthrough and identify any hazards present
- List down equipment and chemicals used
- Identify potential hazards and standard handling procedures
- Record the risk rating and control measures
- Provide recommendations
- Capture digital signature with timestamp
Classroom Risk Assessment Template
Classroom Risk Assessment Template is used to ensure classrooms meet minimum health and safety requirements. It is used by the management team to raise awareness of areas of improvement and control measures needed in the classroom. Follow the points below to utilize this digital classroom risk assessment template:
- Evaluate the classroom facilities and look for defects and damages
- Capture photo evidence and describe the damages
- Provide overall assessment, modifications, and estimated damage cost
- Sign-off with a digital signature to validate the inspection
School Security Assessment Template
This school security assessment template can be used by administrators as a proactive measure for assessing strengths and weaknesses in their campus facilities and develop strong security measures to address loopholes. This tool can also be customized according to different campus security and district requirements.
SafetyCulture Content Specialist
Jona Tarlengco
