Schools must consider age, maturity and skill level of students when planning curriculum activities.
Adjustments are required for
students with disability to support access and participation in the curriculum. Consult with the parents/carers of students with disability or, when appropriate, the student to ensure risks related to their child's participation in the activity are identified and managed.
Schools must consult current student medical information and/or health plans in accordance with the
managing students' health support needs at school procedure. Record information about any student condition (e.g. physical or medical, such as
epilepsy) that may inhibit safe engagement in the activity and include specific support measures within emergency procedures.
For activities with students with a medical condition or disability that may impact on safety during the activity, consultation with parents is required prior to allocating supervision to determine the impact of students' medical condition or disability on safety during the activity.
For participants with known allergies, schools must comply with the
supporting students with asthma and/or at risk of anaphylaxis at school procedure and the school's
anaphylaxis risk management plan (DOCX, 159KB), including an adult supervisor of the activity with
anaphylaxis training.
Emergency plans and injury management procedures must be established for foreseeable incidents (e.g. punctures, forearm welts from the bow string) and incorporate the advice from local authorities.
Adult supervisors must have:
- emergency contact details of all participants
- a medical alert list and a process for administering student medication
- communication equipment suitable to conditions (e.g. mobile phone) and a process for obtaining external assistance and/or receiving emergency advice.
Safety procedures must be determined for the location (e.g. out-of-bounds areas, location of first aid support and equipment) and incorporate advice from off-site facility. Consult the
Archery Australia safety policy for support in determining appropriate safety procedures.
Access is required to
first aid equipment and consumables suitable for foreseeable incidents.
Induction is required for all adult supervisors on emergency procedures, safety procedures (e.g. active and direct supervision for each supervisory role), and correct techniques. If the activity is conducted at an off-site facility, induction is to be informed by advice provided in consultation with expertise at the venue.
Instruction is required for students on safety procedures and correct techniques including safe shooting and retrieval protocols (e.g. use of whistle signals, handling arrows). Consult the
Archery Australia safety policy or
South Queensland Archery Society (SQAS) risk register for support. Rule-reminders are to be provided throughout the activity.
Parent consent (DOCX, 309KB) is required for all activities conducted
off-site and all
extreme risk level activities conducted onsite. It is
strongly recommended that parent consent is obtained for
high risk level activities conducted on-site.
Supervision
Principals, in consultation with the qualified adults, make final supervision decisions for the activity that considers the local context.
Appropriate adult supervision must be provided to manage the activity safely (i.e. prevent an incident from occurring and manage an incident if one were to occur, including managing emergency situations). The principal must give active consideration to the minimum standards set in the CARA guideline for the activity, the CARA planner and the risk assessment when determining the appropriate level of supervision.
See
number of adult supervisors below.
Prepare a supervision plan that considers the advice provided in this CARA guideline. Consider
Archery Australia safety policy for support when supervision planning.
Participants must adhere to all rules and advice communicated by the facility operator/owner and any safety signage at the facility/location.
Before the activity, all adult supervisors:
- must be familiar with the contents of the CARA record, including the emergency and supervision plans.
During the activity, all adult supervisors:
- must provide active and direct supervision—be constantly vigilant, attentive and rescue ready
- must comply with control measures from the CARA record and adapt as hazards arise
- must closely supervise the approach/launch, the shooting line and range area at all times.
The activity must be suspended if the conditions become unfavourable (e.g. extreme temperatures, thunderstorms).
Number of adult supervisors
Principals, in consultation with the qualified adults of the activity, determine the final number of supervisors to fulfil instructional, emergency and supervision roles for the local context that consider
Archery Australia safety policy, the nature of the activity, students' ages, abilities and specialised learning, access and/or health needs. In some instances, the final supervision ratio may be 1:1.
If the minimum safety standard cannot be met, modify the activity (or elements of it) and use the
hierarchy of controls to implement alternative control measures to meet or exceed the minimum safety standard (e.g. reduce the number of students participating at any one time).
See
frequently asked questions (FAQs) for further support.
Supervisor qualifications
Qualifications support the minimum safety standard for this activity. Principals make final decisions* in determining supervisor capability (competence, relevance and currency) and whether the activity leader meets an appropriate teaching standard.
*See
FAQs for further support.
All adult supervisors must comply with the
working with children authority—blue cards procedure.
Qualified adults for the activity
Recovery/emergency—CPR, first aid, rescue
An adult with current emergency qualifications is required to be quickly accessible to the activity area.
Supervisors must have CPR and first aid qualifications relevant to the activity. Emergency qualifications may include:
At least 1 adult supervisor is either:
- a registered teacher with qualifications in Health and Physical Education (HPE) (or equivalent demonstrated capability) and with competence (knowledge and skills) in teaching archery
- an adult supervisor, working under the direct supervision of a registered teacher, with current
level 1 archery instructor accreditation from Archery Australia.
See
FAQs for further support.
Facilities and equipment
The qualified adult supervisor of the activity, in consultation with the principal, determines the requirements for facilities and equipment appropriate to the local context.
Participants must wear
personal protective equipment appropriate to the activity (e.g. enclosed footwear, firmly-fitting clothes that won't become entangled, finger tabs/shooting gloves, chest protectors and armguards). It is recommended armguards extend above the elbow.
Equipment must be sized to match the ability and strength of students including type of bow, bows strung to their recommended string lengths and arrows fitted with target arrow heads.
Consider using a whistle for command signalling.
Equipment hygiene must be maintained (e.g. using paper towels and antiseptic spray or antiseptic wipes).
Targets must have butts that will stop arrows and be set up with parallel flight paths and easily visible faces.
Consult the
Archery Australia safety policy for support in determining safety of facilities and equipment.
Common hazards and controls
Further to those listed, include any additional hazards and control measures considering the local context of the activity.
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Biological material
Body fluids (e.g. blood, saliva, sweat)
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Manage open wounds before, during and after the activity. Consult
infection control guidelines and Queensland Health's
exclusion periods for infectious conditions poster for first aid and hygienic practices
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Environmental conditions
Weather, sun, humidity
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Assess
weather conditions prior to undertaking the activity, inspecting the intended location in order to identify variable risks, hazards and potential dangers.
Follow the
school's sun safety policy, including appropriate clothing (e.g. long sleeved shirts), sun protection (e.g. sunscreen) and shade facilities when outside.
Follow the
managing excessive heat in schools guidelines when participating in very hot or extreme heat conditions.
Ensure drink breaks occur regularly. Make water available for individual participants between drink breaks.
Dry equipment (including arrows) before each shot if conditions cause dampness
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| Facilities and equipment hazards |
Control measures |
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Activity location |
Location must be suitable for the activity being undertaken to ensure safe participation and that safety rules and procedures can be followed. Undertake a reconnaissance of new or infrequently used venues to ascertain suitability |
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Boundary clearance
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Establish a clearly marked exclusion zone that is:
- at least 20m wide on either side of the field of play
- at least 50m behind the targets to provide an overshoot zone. Consider a solid backstop that cannot be breached (e.g. mound or fence) to stop arrows that miss the target
- free from obstructions (e.g. trees, wires, shrubs).
Ensure all participants shoot from the same single shooting line. If different distances are to be shot, stagger the targets not the archers
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Chemicals
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All chemicals in schools must be managed in accordance with the department's
chemical management procedure. All chemicals used in curriculum activities, except consumer chemicals, must be recorded in the school
Chemwatch manifest. Consumer chemicals must be managed according to label instructions.
Lines are marked on grass in accordance with the
line marking of sports fields fact sheet including:
- the waiting area, approach and shooting area
- a single shooting line that provides at least 1m of space between the archers
- a marked waiting line located at least 3m behind the shooting line
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Faulty or dangerous equipment
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Check equipment for damage and stability before and during the activity (e.g. unsecured targets, faulty flights, split arrows, frayed bow strings, cracked fibreglass).
Do not use personal protective equipment with cracks, dents or damage.
Place quivers and/or bow stands on the shooting line.
Clean and store all equipment safely and securely when not in use
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| Student considerations |
Control measures |
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Accidental impalement
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Implement a safe shooting procedure:
- approach the shooting line only when instructed. Only then, may the line may be straddled
- wait for the 'start shooting' signal before picking up the bow and removing arrows from the quiver
- check shooting sector and exclusion zone is clear before preparing to shoot
- face the target with an intent to shoot before drawing an arrow in a bow
- never draw a bow without an arrow, unless under instruction to do so
- leave any arrows that land in front of the shooting line
- position bows vertically with the tip resting on the front foot between shots
- when the 'cease shooting' signal is given, place bows on racks, ground all quivers next to the shooting line and point quivers towards the target. Only then, step back to the waiting line.
Do not permit access to equipment without direct supervision of an adult supervisor.
Assign no more than 3 archers shooting at 1 target at a time.
Position left and right-handed participants to ensure they face the instructor.
Do not allow archers at the shoot line to be distracted by others
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Student issues
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Remove accessories (e.g. jewellery, lanyards) before participating.
Ensure fingernails and hair and clothing (e.g. pockets) do not interfere with the activity.
Monitor and enforce the correct handling of arrows. Do not allow participants to run with arrows at any time
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Physical exertion
Exhaustion and fatigue
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Conduct warm-up/cool-down activities.
Continually monitor participants for signs of fatigue and exhaustion
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