The biggest question that gets asked regularly to people working near or in rivers is this one.

 

“Does my team need training to work near water, legally and safely?”

If you ask it, you can’t avoid the answer which is YES. Water safety training has generally recommended for individuals and teams working near or in water, especially if the work involves potential risks associated with water hazards.

 

The HSE gives you a duty of care to mitigate risks and make sure your team are trained to work safely.  You can however find it hard to work out the solution to the question:

 

“Which course and certificate is the correct one”

There are different certificates and courses on offer, currently most people in industrial, ecology, de-vegetation, scientific, survey, environmental engineering, Television and construction industries use the DEFRA Water Safety Training system. This is taken from DEFRA’s Flood Rescue Concept of Operations (FRCO) (Link). This is because it is the training system followed by the Environment Agency (EA), The Canal and River Trust (CRT) and Natural England (NE). A lot of the works done in or around the water is delivered on their water ways.

 

However did you know……

 

The training stated in the DEFRA FRCO is not managed or checked in any form and can be ran by anyone who understands it and appears experienced. They can then issue their own certificate to make themselves an instructor and offer the training. They can say they have a training location and this can be done from a tent by a river with public access but no facilities. With the advent of online training this can even be done from your bedroom!

 

Yes that is correct, there is no governing body for water safety training in the country. Most providers are self certified experienced operators. No one is in charge and manages the training system, so the standards can be very wild from low to being to high to demonstrate the instructors knowledge as a “rescue specialist” rather than the course and your teams requirements.

 

Coming clean….

 

We had operated in the market for over 10 years as it was the only option, we had self certified like everyone else. All our instructors were qualified instructors in other areas such as Sea Survival, First Aid and Powerboating. They are all highly experienced working near or in water, delivered rescue and safety operations and they went on further development courses, mostly from a mixture of the organisations such as the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) and Rescue 3 (see below).

 

No one apart from the procurement systems within industry have ever checked our training sites, our qualifications or our operational procedures. We come from the RYA, MCA and First Aid Training world. We have developed ourselves, instructors and facilities around what we learnt from those organisations.

 

None of this answers the questions above, what water safety training do we need?

 

You need Water Safety training that meets the requirements of the team, the contract you are working on and the HSE. If you are delivering on the EA, CRT or NE waterways the DEFRA Water Safety Training courses meet the requirements and cover your duty of care to your teams. You will not need above a DEFRA 2 Flood and Responder Course unless you are a specialist rescue team.

 

Here is a break down and simplification of that training up to DEFRA 2:

 

1. DEFRA 1 Flood and Awareness Course:

This is a theoretical course with some basic rescue techniques where you must demonstrate you can use a throw bag or other rescue equipment correctly. This can be done either in person or online providing there is a system for the practical element. Minimum Hours of Training – 4 Hours

2. DEFRA 1 Flood and Awareness (Annex H) Course:

As above but this also includes in water self rescue techniques. Focused on how to look after yourself in the water and the basics to support someone else in an isolated incident. This includes a get wet course for the practical elements which must be done face to face. Minimum hours of training – 6 hours (4 hours is DEFRA 1 was completed in last 2 months).

3. DEFRA 2 Flood and Responder Course:

This is a course focused on those who could be caught out in waters such as rising rivers, flood waters and inland. Especially with the mind that there may be the need to rescue or move in water during times of flooding. This course includes everything in the above ”DEFRA 1” Courses but also includes more specialist in water rescue and self rescue techniques. Minimum hours of training - 14hrs (12hrs if a DEFRA 1 is held)

 

 

The Simple Answer for organisations working within the EA, CRT, NE infrastructures.

 

You will need a DEFRA 1 Flood and Awareness course if you are working close to the water and are at risk of falling in.

 

You will need a DEFRA 1 (Annex H) if you are working near the water but are at High Risk of falling in. For example your job means leaning over the water or collecting samples.

 

You will need a DEFRA 2 Flood and Responder course if you have to enter the water as part of your job.

 

How can I know whether or not I am booking the correct course in a safe and professional training environment?

There are so many different offerings on the market and most of which aren’t certified by any national governing agency. However, a lot of the training on offer is good valuable training and might meet the requirements of your team.

 

There are organisations like the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) and Rescue 3 (see below)  whom all provide a system of training. The other option is training providers that deliver in house style training like Outreach Rescue that are essentially self-certifying but very respected in the field of rescue training. Currently no one owns the rights to this training and it is not managed by one organisation, so it can be web of people telling you who’s certificates are the best and why you should use them. Currently no one is wrong, so how do you mitigate the risk of getting irrelevant, none DEFRA FRCO compliant training in an unsafe location?

 

Sometimes going to trusted larger organisations can give you comfort, particularly with standardisation and incident support. The key parts are standardised training that meets the DEFRA FRCO requirements in a safe, equipped centre recognised by an outside authority. Then on top of this these organisations have also had direct dialogue with DEFRA to ensure their certificates meet the requirements stated.

 

Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK): The Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) is a non-profit organisation that is dedicated to the prevention of drowning and water-related accidents. It was founded in the United Kingdom in 1891 and has since grown to become an international organization with branches and affiliates in many countries around the world. The RLSS UK is one of the oldest and most respected organizations in the field of water safety and drowning prevention.

Rescue 3: An American commercial organization that specializes in providing training and certification programs for water and rope rescue, swiftwater rescue, technical rescue, and other related disciplines. Rescue 3 offers a wide range of courses and training programs designed to equip students in technical rope and water safety.

How do I know the course and certification is safe, recognised and meets HSE standards?

 

Utilise the recognised governing bodies who you can trust as they have a history of training in this field. Does the provider have recognition and authority to deliver training from a training body that is recognised in the field of rescue. For example the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) who have been training life guards for over 100 years and support organisations who have had in water incidents. They don’t just deliver training they develop water safety strategies nationally for the UK and have direct dialogue with DEFRA.

 

Summary:

To summarise and answer the original question YES you do need to train and certify teams that work near, over or in water. The DEFRA systems work well in the more industrial and scientific industries but be aware of whom is delivering the training. How is the certificate certified and who is certifying it. If you ask the question you probably know the answer, so you should be concentrating on the best solution to train your team to be safe and cover you as a company and your duty of care. Don’t send your teams to tents by rivers that haven’t been checked from other authorities such as the RLSS UK or Rescue 3.

 

If I don’t follow the DEFRA Water Safety Training what are my other options?

 

For a lot of organisations and people away from the more industrial and scientific industries there is still basic training available. Organisations such as Schools and Golf Clubs for example use the RLSS UK Water Rescue Equipment Training (WRET) course. This is a basic course for people to be able to risk assess the area they are in and then perform a rescue using the nearest rescue equipment to them.

 

This type of training works for organisation that may have a lake or water feature onsite or at an attraction they are visiting. More information on this type of training can be found here (LINK)

 

Note: Bristol Maritime works to the RLSS UK DEFRA training system and the RLSS UK have inspected our training sites. We are committed to delivering within a standardised system for our centres, training team and more importantly our students.