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) that may inhibit safe engagement in the activity and include specific support measures within emergency procedures.
Emergency plans and injury management procedures must be established for foreseeable incidents (e.g. evacuation procedure, provision of
first aid).
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. location of first aid support and equipment, heat sources) and are to be informed by information provided as manufacturer’s instructions, product labels, vendor SDS and SOP as relevant.
Access is required to
first aid equipment and consumables suitable for foreseeable incidents.
An adult with current emergency qualifications is required to be quickly accessible to the activity area. Emergency qualifications include:
Induction is required for all adult supervisors on emergency procedures (e.g. evacuation procedure) and safety procedures (e.g. heat sources). 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 and adult supervisors on correct techniques (e.g. use of sharp implements).
Parent consent (DOCX, 306KB) is required for all activities conducted off-site and strongly recommended for
high risk activities conducted on-site.
Supervision
Principals make final supervision decisions for the activity. Sufficient adult supervision must be provided to manage the activity safely (including emergency situations).
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.
It is recommended that teacher demonstration be used as the principal teaching strategy for medium and high activities.
The number of adult supervisors required to fulfil emergency and supervision roles must consider the nature of the activity, students' ages, abilities and specialised learning, access and/or health needs.
Before the activity, all adult supervisors:
- must be familiar with the contents of the CARA record
- must inspecting the intended location in order to identify variable risks, hazards and potential dangers.
During the activity, all adult supervisors:
- must be readily identifiable
- must closely monitor students with health support needs
- must closely supervise students when using and mixing chemicals and when using machines
- must comply with control measures from the CARA record and adapt as hazards arise
- must suspend the activity if the conditions become unfavourable.
Supervisor qualifications
Principals make final decisions in determining supervisor capability (competence, relevance and currency) and are responsible for encouraging and enabling school-based activity supervisors to raise their qualifications to improve safety standards.
All adult supervisors must comply with the working with children authority—Blue Cards procedure and be able to identify, and respond to, risks or hazards that may emerge during the activity.
A registered teacher must be appointed to maintain overall responsibility for the activity.
At least one adult supervisor is required to be:
For
low risk activities:
- A registered teacher with knowledge of fabric and fibre activities and the potential hazards, or
- an adult supervisor, working under the direct supervision of a registered teacher, with knowledge of fabric and fibre activities and the potential hazards.
For
medium and high risk activities:
- A registered teacher with demonstrated competence (knowledge and skills) in fabric and fibre activities and knowledge of the properties and hazards associated with all materials and equipment used, or
- an adult supervisor, working under the direct supervision of a registered teacher, with demonstrated competence (knowledge and skills) in fabric and fibre activities and knowledge of the properties and hazards associated with all materials and equipment used.
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.
Location must be suitable for the activity being undertaken, including sufficient space, adequate lighting and ventilation to ensure safe participation and that safety rules and procedures can be followed. Undertake a reconnaissance of new or infrequently used locations to ascertain suitability.
Participants must wear
personal protective equipment as relevant (e.g. enclosed footwear).
Stable benches (e.g. sewing or drafting tables) and chairs or stools of a height suitable for the activity must be available.
All equipment must be used in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
A process for checking for damage for all equipment used in the activity must be established and employed.
A maintenance schedule (e.g. checking for damage, repairing, sharpening) must be established and enacted for all plant and equipment used in the workspace (e.g. sewing machines). Consult
Equipment Maintenance Records (EMR) template.
A retirement schedule must be developed to replace plant and equipment by manufacturers' nominated expiry date or when significant wear causes a hazard.
If privately owned equipment is being used, Principal approval and owner consent/insurance details must be obtained prior to the activity.
Consult
chemicals in curriculum activities for support in assessing the risks of chemicals used with/by students in curriculum activities.
If a CARA record is required in OneSchool, a summary of chemicals, plant, equipment and/or materials used in the activity must be provided by entering directly onto the CARA record in OneSchool or by attaching a summary. Sample templates are provided on
chemicals in curriculum activities and
plant, equipment and materials in curriculum activities.