Gym risk assessments are essential for keeping your staff and your members safe from the many hazards present in health and fitness facilities. In this post we will outline the fundamentals of a gym risk assessment, including your legal duty to keep people safe.
You Have A Legal Duty To Manage Risk In Your Gym
Under the Health and safety at Work Act etc. 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, if you own or operate a gym you have a legal duty to assess and manage all health and safety risks.
A gym risk assessment will help you understand all the potential hazards in your gym, and who is at risk. It will also help you identify your current capacity to manage these risks, along with any new measures you should introduce to help keep people safe.
Gym Risk Assessment Basics
How to Identify The Hazards in a Gym
The first step of any risk assessment is to identify all the potential hazards in your gym.
These might include:
- Environmental Hazards – Such as slippery or uneven floors, poor lighting, trailing cables, blocked walkways and emergency exits, and issues with noise levels, temperature, and ventilation. You should also consider hygiene hazards from contaminated or poorly maintained equipment and facilities, and chemical hazards from improper use or storage of cleaning equipment.
- Equipment Hazards – Staff and customers alike could injure themselves through inappropriately moving or using equipment. If any of your equipment is damaged or faulty, then it could cause injuries even if people do use it correctly.
- Fire Hazards – Identify all possible sources of fires, paying particular attention to your electrical equipment. Also identify your current means of detecting and managing fire outbreaks, and your current means of alerting staff and customers, and helping them evacuate.
How to Identify Who Is At Risk
For every hazard you identify, you should specify exactly:
- Who might be harmed
- How they might be harmed
- How likely it is that they will be harmed
Beyond your staff and your customers, think about other members of the public who may visit your premises, including contractors, delivery personnel, and emergency services staff.
Ways to Mitigate Risks in a Gym
Once you have determined the hazards in your gym, along with who is at risk, and the possible severity of the harm, it is time to determine the precautions you are going to take to mitigate these risks:
- Ongoing staff training, to help them understand all the hazards, along with the procedures they will follow in the event of an incident.
- Adequate staff-to-member ratios, so that your staff can identify and respond to any emerging situations as early as possible.
- Thorough induction processes for all new members, along with routine refresher sessions for more experienced members.
- Regular cleaning and maintenance schedules for all equipment, with a procedure for removing, repairing, or replacing any faulty or damaged equipment the moment you spot an issue.
- A thorough cleaning schedule for the whole gym environment, so as to clear areas of trip hazards while addressing any potential health issues arising from poor hygiene practices.
- Environmental controls, including ensuring there is adequate space between equipment to avoid collisions and overcrowding, while also addressing noise levels, temperature levels, and ventilation issues.
- Emergency protocols, including the availability of first aid and defibrillator kits, and ensuring that your staff know how to use them. You should also have a fire response plan in place, and you might also consider drilling your staff on responding to aggressive members, or potentially violent situations.
Special Measures and Additional Risks For 24 Hour Gyms
If your gym is open round the clock, then you might have to consider some additional risks. For example, there will likely be times when your gym will be unsupervised. It is therefore vital that all members know how to take care of themselves when they are using the gym out of hours, including the procedures for responding to emergency situations.
You can read our full guide to risk management for 24 hour gyms.
Your Written Gym Risk Assessment
Ultimately, your gym risk assessment will need to be a written document which clearly outlines every hazard you have identified, and how you intend to manage them. It should also specify who is responsible for carrying out every action you have proposed, along with a target completion date for every improvement you wish to make.
You should aim to review your risk assessment at least once a year, or immediately following any incidents – even if these incidents were just “near misses”.
Keep Good Records And You Could Save On Your Insurance
As we mentioned above, you have a legal duty to assess and manage all health and safety risks in your gym. Good record keeping is essential. But beyond keeping your staff and members safe, your risk assessment process could ultimately benefit you in other ways too.
If you can evidence your gym’s risk management procedures, you may be able to make a saving on the cost of your gym insurance.
James Hallam is an independent Lloyd’s broker with access to a hand-picked selection of A-rated insurance providers. We can help you understand the unique risks you face as a gym, and we can show you how to properly evidence your risk management procedures in order to access specialist at a competitive price.
Find out how we can help you today.