SUFC Health and Safety Policy
Introduction
The Selwyn United Football Club Incorporated (SUFC) is firmly committed to the implementation of a Health and Safety
(H&S) policy that enables all Club activities to be carried out safely and with all practical measures taken to remove or
minimise risks to the health, safety and welfare of players, spectators, volunteers, employees, contractors, authorised
visitors and anyone else who may be affected by our operations.
SUFC is committed to ensuring we comply with the relevant Health and Safety Act and Regulations, applicable codes of
practice and guidelines to create a safe environment for all and to obtain expert advice and guidance to achieve this
commitment where necessary.
Responsibilities
1. SUFC Board
The Club Board have a responsibility for ensuring SUFC’s H&S policy and practices are in line with best practice
where reasonably practicable and to set a positive H&S culture for the Club and its members.
As a Volunteer Association, SUFC is not considered a Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU)
and, as such, has no legal obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. See SUFC Health and Safety
at Work Act 2015 Obligations.
In line with our desire to ensure we carry out our Club activities safely however, the SUFC H&S policy and various
supporting policies and practice documents have been developed ensuring we maintain a commonsense approach to
ensuring we keep people safe while playing for SUFC. All H&S policies and practice documents will be subject to
regular review to ensure they continue to meet the needs of the Club and its members.
2. Members, players, volunteers, spectators and contractors
Have a responsibility to be familiar with and adhere to the Club’s policies and practices put in place to ensure their
safety, as well as taking all reasonable care of their own H&S and the H&S of others.
Hazards and Risks
SUFC’s hazards and risks can be broadly captured under the following headings:

People – Players, coaches, managers, volunteers, spectators, etc.

On Field – Ground, goals, nets, etc., playing the game.

Facilities – Changing rooms, toilets, clubroom, etc.

Equipment – Vehicles, line markers, trailers, goalposts, nets, equipment storage areas, etc.
The applicable policies and practice documents that support the safe management of the above are detailed below and
have been developed using accepted risk management frameworks and best practice documents where these are
available.
People
SUFC already has a number of policies in place that deal with the overall safety of its members, these are:

SUFC Child-Safe Child-Friendly policy

SUFC Privacy policy

SUFC Anti-Harassment policy

SUFC Code of Conduct

SUFC Volunteer Role Descriptions
Final SUFC H&S Policy – May 2016
SUFC members are encouraged to read, be familiar and adhere to these as they apply to the member.
In line with our continuous improvement culture the Board welcomes feedback or suggestions to any of its policies and
practices at any time via sending an email to [email protected] or by raising the matter with any of the current Board
member directly.
On Field
In developing the SUFC On Field policy, the focus has remained on the reason we have a Football Club, to enjoy the
game of football, whether this be for players, coaches, managers, spectators or members of the public.
Part of this enjoyment comes from ensuring that the game and any training/coaching sessions can be held in a safe
environment, on safe fields and using safe equipment.
Facilities
SUFC recognizes that at present the facilities we use are not owned by the Club but mainly by the Selwyn District Council
and other organisations.
As such the Club has no direct control over these facilities. The Club/SUFC Board does however maintain ongoing
relationships with the facility owners, ensuring that any risks/hazards or general issues are raised and managed as soon
as is practical.
A Memorandum of Understanding with the Selwyn District Council (SDC) on the use of Foster Park can be found here
SDC MOU Foster Park.
All Club Members are invited to raise any health and safety concerns regarding any of the facilities used by the Club by
sending an email to [email protected] or by raising the matter with any current Board member.
Equipment
To ensure SUFC has playing fields available to its members the Club owns a number of pieces of equipment to maintain
the grounds, as well as equipment directly involved during games, coaching or training sessions, such as goalposts, nets,
etc.
SUFC has ensured that any equipment owned by the Club is suitable for purpose and maintained in a safe manner. Use
of the majority of the equipment by its members is subject to some common sense rules, while some equipment has
been classified to be used by trained Club members only. The equipment and the safe use of this is described in the
following “Safe Use” policies:

SUFC Vehicle, Trailers policy

SUFC Goal Posts and Nets policy

SUFC Public Announcement system policy

SUFC Marquees policy

SUFC Equipment and Storage areas policy
Final SUFC H&S Policy – May 2016