Adelaide Swords Club Health and Safety Policy Effective 1 February 2018 Review Date 1 February 2019 Date 1 February 2018 Version 5.1 Adelaide Swords Club – Health and Safety Policy 2018 1 HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY PURPOSE This policy is designed to promote work health and safety within the Adelaide Swords Club. The committee of the Adelaide Swords Club wishes to promote safety in the club and seeks the cooperation of all club members and visitors for that purpose. It is an individual and shared responsibility; therefore, there are many ways in which club members can reduce the risk and incidence of injury and accidents. Although the sport of fencing is low risk, accidents can happen in any environment. It is the objective of the committee to reduce the incidence of accidents and subsequent injuries to an absolute minimum. The guiding principle when participating in fencing, whether training with a coach or bouting, should be that common sense is always the best guide. CONTENTS: 1. Safety Procedures 1.1 General Safety Requirements. 1.2 Equipment Requirements. 1.3 Equipment Standards. 1.4 Beginners. 1.5 Safety on the Piste. 1.6 Safety Procedures: accidents. 2. Roles and responsibilities 3. Codes of Behaviour Appendix A – Piste layout and fencing attire Appendix B – Legal Responsibility Appendix C – The running of classes Adelaide Swords Club – Health and Safety Policy 2018 2 1. SAFETY PROCEDURES 1.1 General safety requirements 1.1.1 The most common fencing injuries are either strained muscles or ankle/knee injuries. All persons participating in training, lessons and bouting should remember the following principles: • Warm up thoroughly. • Understand the importance of correct footwork. Footwork sessions are run twice each week. All members should attend as often as possible. • Always wear indoor sports shoes that provide suitable high impact protection and good grip. 1.1.2 The floor of the hall can be slippery. Persons training and bouting should exercise caution. If the floor becomes too slippery, stop fencing and alert a committee member. 1.1.3 Adequate space must be left between pistes to allow for blade movements and foot traffic. Ground leads and extension cords should be neatly laid to minimise the risk of tripping/slipping. Fencers should avoid leaving the piste while still connected to a spool to reduce obstruction by spool wires. 1.1.4 Fencing bags and other personal items should be stored away from pistes and practice areas. 1.1.5 Always obey the instructions of club coaches and officials. Be cognisant of advice given by members of the club in relation to safety issues. 1.1.6 Any member of the club seeing a person not complying with this safety policy should point this out to the person and politely ask them to take the steps necessary to comply. In the unlikely event that the person refuses to comply, an official of the club should be advised so that an appropriate action can be taken. 1.2 Equipment Requirements 1.2.1 Individual lessons: A coach should wear (at minimum): mask, glove and coach’s padded jacket. A student should wear all equipment required by the coach conducting the lesson, but the minimum required by this policy is: mask, glove and appropriate footwear. 1.2.2 Group lessons: Students are required to wear suitable athletic clothing during non-weapon training. For weapon training students are required to wear a breast plate (for women), plastron, jacket, mask, glove, long pants or breeches and long socks (pulled up so that no skin is exposed), and appropriate footwear. Adelaide Swords Club – Health and Safety Policy 2018 3 1.2.3 Bouting (individual or group): Fencers are required to wear breast plate (for women), plastron, jacket, mask, glove, long pants or breeches and long socks (pulled up so that no skin is exposed), and appropriate footwear. 1.3 Personal Protective Equipment: 1.3.1 It is the responsibility of individual fencers to ensure that the equipment they are using is in a safe condition, and ensure the repair or replacement of any personally- owned equipment. Fencers should check their own equipment regularly for any faults. 1.3.2 It is the responsibility of the committee to repair any broken equipment that belongs to the club. If a fencer notices a piece of equipment that is unsafe or needs repair, they should bring it to the attention of the armourer/committee/coach. Masks: Fencers must wear masks of appropriate size conforming at least to the minimum safety standards as recommended by the Australian Fencing Federation. Masks must be checked for the following weaknesses and defects, if necessary by a qualified armourer: • Weaknesses in the steel mesh, softness, holes or excessive deformation of the hard shell from the original shape. • The bib not properly attached or revealing gaps between it and the mask, or curling up. • Poor means of retention on the head, making the mask liable to come off. Fencers must wear a mask back-strap or some other approved method of mask retention. Attempts must not be made to repair the steel mesh of a mask. If the mask is weak or damaged, it must not be used. Jackets & Breeches: Fencers must wear jackets of appropriate size conforming at least to the minimum safety standard as recommended by the Australian Fencing Federation. • Where breeches are required, fencers must wear breeches of appropriate size conforming at least to the minimum safety standard as recommended by the Australian Fencing Federation. • There should be a minimum of 10cms (4 inches) overlap between breeches and jacket when the fencer is on guard. • Jackets should fasten on the opposite side to the sword arm, or at the back. • Breeches should reach and stay below the knee whilst fencing. • For general training within the Club, breeches may be replaced by full-length trousers or tracksuit trousers of sufficiently strong material. • Clothing must not be used which is damaged, shows visible tears or weakened by excessive use. Plastrons: Adelaide Swords Club – Health and Safety Policy 2018 4 Fencers must wear plastrons of appropriate size conforming at least to the minimum safety standard as recommended by the Australian Fencing Federation. Chest Guards: It is compulsory for women to wear rigid chest protection. It is recommended that girls wear rigid chest protection (shaped or flat) from the age of ten or from the onset of puberty if earlier. Gloves: The gauntlet must be long enough to cover approximately half the forearm and remain over the sleeve of the jacket whilst fencing. Gloves must not have any opening other than the one for the body wire; they should be inspected regularly for any holes and tears. Socks and shoes: Socks should always be covered by the bottom of the breeches, so that no bare skin is showing. Suitable indoor trainer type shoes should be worn. See Appendix A for an example of appropriate fencing attire. 1.4 Weapons: Weapons – General: Note: The FIE has laid down equipment standards that fencers must observe in order to compete in the Olympic Games, in World Championships and in all 'A' grade/ World Cup/Satellite and Zonal events. Other competition organisers may also demand these standards. Weapons should be regularly inspected and checked to ensure they are in a safe, usable condition. Almost all serious fencing injuries are caused by penetration by a broken blade, so please pay particular attention to the following section. Weapons – Blades: To reduce the risk of broken blades, never use a blade (or fence with someone who is using such a blade) if any portion displays obvious kinks or excessive plasticity that may lead to a break - e.g. irregular or uneven curve or inability to correct such a bend. Any sharp bends indicate weakness in the blade. Any mild bends should be straightened by an experienced fencer. DO NOT use a blade that you know to be defective. Weapons - Tips Weapon tips should conform to the FIE requirements. Sabre blades should be checked regularly as wear and tear risks reducing the tip size, making the penetration risk higher. The point of a non-electric foil or épée (including a dummy electric foil blade) must be covered with a commercially produced plastic button in good condition or an integrated button. Weapons – Guards Continuous use of a weapon can leave sharp edges round the guard circumference, which are a potential hazard. Such guards must not be used. Guards which are dented enough to risk trapping a point must not be used. 1.5 Beginners Adelaide Swords Club – Health and Safety Policy 2018 5 Beginners should be given instruction on safety principles (e.g. never raise your blade when people around you are not wearing masks) and how to dress themselves properly with the equipment. Beginners should be instructed by a coach or experienced fencer who will be responsible for ensuring that safety principles are upheld. Senior fencers are expected to be role models for beginners. 1.6 Safety on the Piste • Never raise your point or cross blades without putting on your mask and ensuring your opponent has their mask on and is ready to begin. • Be aware of your surroundings: Don’t step out on to the piste area without making sure it’s safe. Be aware of coaches’ lesson trajectories – do not get in the way. • Do not drive your opponent in to a wall or a hazard. • Be mindful of your fencing distance • If you are repeatedly colliding with your opponent, stop fencing until you can correct the error. • Stop fencing IMMEDIATELY if you think something is wrong, of if your opponent indicates something is wrong, or if your opponent falls over.