General

  1. Before any project starts the site must be assessed by the site manager or project leader for any safety points specific to it. These points must be included in the safety talk to volunteers. If work will involve digging more than 300mm deep, it is advisable to check for underground services.
  2. The leader should give a brief safety talk at the base or van, before the group walk to the work site. This should include the safe carrying and use of tools, working practices and site hazards. Once on site, further explanation of particular points should be made as necessary.
  3. A first aid kit must be available at all times. Where volunteers are spread along the length of a path, a first aid kit should be kept no further than 400m from any volunteer. A suitable kit is listed below.
  4. All volunteers should have had a tetanus injection within the last five years.
  5. Do not work in soaking rain. Once gloves, tools and materials are sodden, the danger of accident increases, and slopes become hazardous.
  6. Wear suitable tough clothing (see below).
  7. When moving heavy weights, bend your knees and use your leg muscles, not your back muscles. Never try to lift more than you are capable of, and if two or more people are together moving something, appoint a leader to call the moves. Time spent on planning the stages of moving a heavy object is not time wasted.
    Correct method of lifting heavy object
    When moving boulders, always wear gloves as they not only give better grip in wet and muddy conditions, but they also give some protection against crushed fingers.
    Lifting a heavy boulder is hazardous to hands, feet and back, and two people together lifting an awkward shaped boulder can be even more dangerous, and should be avoided. It is nearly always easier and safer to roll or lever big boulders with crowbars, preferably secured by a winch anchor. When carrying buckets of gravel or other material, it is better to half-fill two buckets and carry a balanced load, rather than to carry one full bucket.
  8. In most cases you will be working on a public path, and the safety of other path users must be kept in mind. Stop work to allow walkers and riders safe passage if you are using potentially dangerous tools. Warning signs may be helpful, and can incorporate publicity for the group doing the work.
  9. All volunteers with TCV are covered for public liability and personal accident while on the work site. TCV Community Network groups to can arrange to be covered by their policies. Other groups should arrange similar cover.

Tool use

The leader should give a brief talk on the safe and proper use of tools.

  1. Never use a tool with which you are unfamiliar. Ask the leader to explain and demonstrate its use.
  2. Carry tools by your side at their point of balance with the head of the tool forward, where you can see it. Hold edged tools with the blade down. Do not walk too close to others, or try to overtake on narrow paths. If crowbars have to be carried a long way up a hillside, then carrying one between two people may be necessary. A crowbar should not be carried across the shoulder by one person, because of the risk of injuring anyone who gets too close.
    Carrying tools correctly
  3. Keep a safe working distance from others.
  4. Do not leave tools lying around where they may be stepped on or lost. At each work site have a base for the tools away from the immediate working area, and out of the way of walkers. Beware of leaving crowbars on a slope where they may slide or roll down. Do not stick them in the ground to secure them, but wedge them against a rock or bank where they cannot roll.
  5. Tools are safest to use when sharp and well maintained. Never use tools with loose or damaged handles.
  6. If using a sledgehammer to split rock, you must wear eye protectors and safety helmet. Make sure no-one else is close by, and find a firm footing where you can safely swing the hammer. Check the state of the shaft and hammer head after every few blows.

Upland paths

Special precautions should be taken when working on upland paths, where the mountain weather, rough terrain and inaccessibility combine to make potentially dangerous working conditions. The appointed first aider must be aware of the symptoms of exposure, and be able to give first aid. They should check local rescue arrangements in case of accident or exposure.

  1. Take spare clothing. The weather can change rapidly in the mountains, and a sunny day may suddenly become misty and cold.
  2. Include survival items in the first aid kit as an injured person will rapidly lose body temperature. Include an exposure bag and high glucose food such as Dextrosol or Kendal mint cake as part of the welfare kit (see below).
  3. Rather than risk overloading people, it may be best to carry up the tools in two trips on two successive days. It can be dangerous if you slip whilst carrying tools in both hands. Tirfor winches and accessories, and awkward items such as mattock heads are best carried in rucksacks.
  4. Unless the weather is very warm and settled, it may be better to plan on having a short lunchbreak and finishing earlier in the afternoon than is usual on a lowland task. Work on upland paths is usually arduous, and the walk up combined with exposure to wind or sun may tire volunteers more than they expect. Accidents are more likely to happen when people get tired and lose concentration. The length of the walk back to the vehicle must also be kept in mind.
  5. Take great care on the way down, and do not rush or race back. More accidents happen in hill-walking on the way down than on the way up.
  6. The moving of boulders must be done with great care both to volunteers and walkers, especially if it is necessary to take boulders from above the line of the path. It may be necessary to have a person stationed at either end of any exposed section of path, so that walkers can be stopped whilst stone is being moved.

Chapters