Curriculum

Subject coordinators, or persons who design undergraduate student activities, have a legal responsibility to manage any risks to health and safety that may arise from these activities.

Where student activities may involve hazards that can cause harm to health and safety (e.g. some practical and laboratory work), the designer of that activity must use a risk management process to help manage any risks to health and safety.

Step 1: Identify the hazard

Use the hazard table as a guide to see if the subject involves any health and safety hazards.

Step 2: Assess risk

If there are no health and safety hazards related to the subject, then just note that no hazards are present.

Risk assessments

If any hazards are present, then a risk assessment must be undertaken.

Risk assessments should be done for every subject before the start of the teaching semester.

If a risk assessment has been done previously, then it should be reviewed on an annual basis.

If the subject content has changed (e.g. addition of new experiments, modification to existing practical classes) then the risk assessment must be updated.

All those involved in teaching the subject, such as technical staff, lecturer or demonstrator, the should be consulted during the risk assessment process.

Risk assessments are recorded on the:
Health and safety risk assessment - for undergraduate practical work (dot, 165 kB) enable macros for active checkboxes,
the form is designed to lead the assessor carefully through the risk assessment process. NOTE: Some Faculties have their own internal undergraduate risk management procedure. Contact the Faculty Office for details.

In addition, where:

• dangerous goods or hazardous substances are to be used, record a:
  Chemical risk assessment - for undergraduate practical work (dot, 153 kB) enable macros for active checkboxes, and
• an overnight excursion, out of UTS grounds is to take place, follow the UTS Fieldwork Guidelines.

Completed risk assessments can be stored by the subject coordinator in UTSOnline.

Step 3: Controlling the risk

Any risk control strategies identified through a risk assessment should then be communicated to the student in course notes or laboratory manual and in student orientation.

Student orientation

New students should be orientated in UTS procedures related to:

• accident and incident reporting,
• first aid and
• emergency response (watch the "Escape from UTS" emergency evacuation video.
• specific hazard information based on the outcome of coursework risk assessments.