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Latest Research
Research Details
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| Research Title: |
The policies and practices of sports governing bodies in relation to assessing the safety of sports grounds. |
| Type of Research: |
Media Releases |
| Category: |
Policy
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| Keywords: |
Sports ground, safety, policy, guideline, risk
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| Author(s): |
Peter Swan, Leonie Otago, Caroline Finch, Warren Payne |
| Author(s) Bio Box: |
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| Release Date: |
25 June 2009 |
| Research Summary/Text: |
Ongoing drought conditions in some regions of Australia have raised concerns about turf playing conditions and the risk of injury to players. Four Victorian state-level sports governing bodies – Australian football, cricket, soccer and hockey – participated in a study involving 30 minute semi-structured interviews and review of their current policies and guidelines related to ground conditions and suitability for play. The extent to which formal checklists were used, perceptions of the value of sports ground safety policies, and differences across levels of play were explored.
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| Research Objectives: |
The aim of the study was to describe current grounds assessment policies and practices advocated by four major state-level sports governing bodies.
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| Research Outcomes: |
There was a belief that policies and procedures provided by the sports governing bodies were being implemented at all levels but there were few formal processes in place to monitor this.
The delineation between policies and guidelines was not clear but there was consistency amongst the checklists used as they were developed by the one insurance agency. These checklists covered ground surface conditions and irregularities, debris on the surface, perimeter fencing, padding of goal posts and presence of first aid staff and equipment, as well as change rooms and toilet safety.
The use of checklists was well accepted and promoted across all levels of each of the sports, however there was often no formal process in place for lodging checklists centrally or monitoring their use and subsequent actions.
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| Research Implications: |
Insurance imperatives are a strong driver for implementing safety checklists at all levels of sport, however the use of a safety checklist is only as good as the action in response to identified issues. There is scope for further work by sports governing bodies, in collaboration with their insurers where relevant, to improve the safety of sports grounds through implementation of risk assessment, risk reduction and monitoring systems across all levels of sport.
Checklists cannot be too onerous for volunteer officials. Training in their correct use should be provided.
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