The notes included in this article are in response questions from cavers and others who have sought information and clarification about this recently introduced legislation.
The Act came about in response to the tragic deaths of four teenagers who drowned off Lyme Bay in 1993 whilst taking part in an adventure holiday. The manager of the centre was convicted of manslaughter and received a three year jail sentence. It transpired that the company was poorly run and the instructors were not sufficiently qualified or experienced for the proposed trip.
The aim of the adventure activities licensing scheme is to give assurance that good safety management practice is being followed so that young people can continue to have opportunities to experience exciting and stimulating activities outdoors while not being exposed to avoidable risks of death and disabling injury.
The four general categories cover up to more than 20 recognisable adventure activities e.g. climbing would include sea level traversing and gorge walking.
Anyone who provides in return for payment adventure activities to young people under 18.
Caving clubs do not need a licence if no-one in the club is under 18 years old or if they never make a charge for club outings. Even if they do have under 18 year old members there is still unlikely to be a problem.
There is an explicit exemption in the regulations that affects clubs. To qualify, the club needs to be a Voluntary Association, i.e. non-profit making membership organisation.
Membership is easy to define. Annual subscriptions help to make the point but they are not essential. Membership cards or just a list of members is probably sufficient. Temporary membership is probably sufficient.
Non profit making is a bit more difficult. Clubs are allowed to make a surplus (for example from subscriptions, fund raising etc.) but that must be redistributed within the club. There is only a problem if someone takes money out of the club, as happens in business when a company shareholder receives a dividend for instance. They can even have paid officers.
Voluntary is a bit of a catch-all phrase. When most people think of voluntary organisations they think of Scouts etc. In relation to the Licensing Regulations it simply means an organisation which is not a business, or part of a business, conducted for profit.
Collecting these together implies that a typical caving club which has a membership and is not trying to be a business is likely to be exempt from the Regulations. And if they are exempt they can do pretty much do what they (i.e. the members) want. Moreover, they should note that this includes charging for activities. They can hire someone to run a training course and charge their members to cover the cost or even make a profit for the club.
What they cannot do is to charge non-members or make someone a member solely for the purposes of selling them a course of instruction.
Tourism Quality Services Limited have been designated as the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority. It is a non profit making company based in Cardiff.
Address: A.A.L.A., 17 Lambourne Crescent, Llanishen, Cardiff, CF4 5GG. Telephone: 02920 755715
The inspections will be carried out by one of the team of 9 Licensing Authority Inspectors all of whom come from positions within the outdoors and have a high degree of expertise within it. John Cliffe is one of them who was the National Caving Association Training Coordinator until last year.
The applications received by July 1996 have to be inspected by the end of September 1997. Applications received after that date must be received three months prior to a provider wishing to operate.
Providers have to satisfy the Licensing Authority that they have done a suitable risk assessment; i.e. identified the significant hazards created by its activities, evaluated the risks and put in place measures to control the risks.
The above should translate into:
In short all matters relating to safety are checked.
The regulations require that providers are effectively advised by people who are competent to do so if they do not have all the necessary knowledge and expertise themselves. The NCA was in consultation with the HSE in drawing up a guide to qualifications suitable for leaders and technical advisors for caving. This information is summarised in a matrix contained in the Guidelines. i.e. The Local Cave and Mine Leader Assessment or Cave Instructor Certificate, are appropriate qualifications for leaders depending on the cave or mine used and for caving it is expected that providers should be advised in most cases by a CIC holder familiar with the type of operation being run.
As part of ensuring safety it is expected that if abandoned mines are used for groups they will have been checked out by someone competent to do so. Except in the case of obviously very stable and well ventilated mines it is likely that a survey by a qualified mines engineer would need to undertaken.
Providers are expected to investigate the extent of any problems relating to Radon and take appropriate action. This action will give protection particularly to instructors.
The licence contains standard conditions requiring providers to maintain suitable safety systems in place. In addition it may specify non-standard conditions which specify:
if necessary to ensure that providers operate within the limits of their safety systems.
The charges are set down by government and are 200 pounds application fee plus an inspection fee of 200 pounds plus 30 pounds per hour of inspection up to a total inspection fee of 1200 pounds. (Small organisations would normally take less than a day and larger ones possibly up to several days.)
How long will a licence be valid for?
The maximum validation period for a licence is three years from its date of commencement. The actual expiry date is specified on the licence. The time limit is set depending on a number of factors which will include amongst others:
The guidance given by the Health and Safety Commission to the Licensing Authority indicates that the maximum three year interval between licensing inspection should be reserved for highly competent providers with stable and robust management systems and a very small number of highly competent staff.
The names of all licence applicants are currently held by the Licensing Authority in a public register. A register of licence holders will be established as licences are granted. This will be updated as necessary to ensure that it contains only relevant information.
Any person can contact the Licensing Authority to enquire whether a licence has been applied for, or is held by, a named provider. Any enquirer wishing to view The Register can do so free of charge and by appointment. The Register is kept at the Licensing Authority office in Cardiff. A copy of The Register can be supplied on receipt of specified charges.
In advertisements providers must specify to which activities the licence relates and give the telephone number of the Licensing Authority. This enables members of the public to verify the licence if they wish.
All the comments given are in good faith based on my interpretation of the act and the related guidelines produced by the HSE. Where providers or others need further guidance it is recommended that they read the Guidance to the Licensing Authority on The Adventure Activities Licensing Regulations 1996 obtainable from:
HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk, CO10 6FS. Telephone: 01787 881165, Fax: 01787 313995, Price 9.00 pounds.
If anyone has particular concerns it may also be worth talking to the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority who may be able to guide you through the details. In the final analysis a definitive interpretation of any part of the Act can only be made by a court of law.
Special thanks to John Cliffe, (formerly NCA's Training Co-ordinator, now one of the nine Licencing Inspectors for the scheme), for providing a definitive statement written from the cavers' point of view.
Return to NCA Home Page