- The law around health and safety can be complex but must be complied with.
- Any event run by (or in the name of) the BHS must be organised with the full knowledge of your committee/team and/or your National/Regional Manager.
- All required health and safety documents should be sent to eventsafety@bhs.org.uk prior to the event.
- Failure to comply with the above will compromise the BHS insurance cover.
Event Health & Safety Training
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Event Health & Safety training is available as an online module on the BHS Wise training platform. This means that volunteers can access and complete this training in their own time at their own speed. We would encourage all volunteers involved with organising events on behalf of the BHS to complete this training. It is mandatory for anyone completing the Risk Assessment for an event to have undertaken this training. In order to access this training you must have activated your BHS email address. Please note, this training is valid for three years and needs to be refreshed on expiry. If you would like to take this training please email volunteer@bhs.org.uk.
We sometimes run face to face online Event Health & Safety training. Details and dates of this training can be found here.
First Aid Training
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There needs to be an appropriate level of First Aid cover at events run by, and on behalf of, BHS (please see data sheet DS4) and we recognise that some volunteers may need to have a first aid qualification to cover this requirement.
The BHS offer Equine Specific First Aid Training.
Initial training is a two day course and is valid for two years.
Refresher training is a one day course which is then valid for a further two years.
This training needs to be agreed in advance with your National/Regional Manager, so please speak with them first.
To book:-
- Go to the BHS Website via this link - BOOK YOUR PLACE.
There should be a ticket option for 'BHS Volunteer' which will give a 10% discount on the usual price (if this option is not showing, please contact your National/Regional Manager) - You will need to pay for this directly and then claim the money back using a BHS Expense Claim Form and categorise the item as a 'Committee' expense.
Health & Safety Data Sheets
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- DS1 - Risk Assessments for BHS Events
- DS2 - Reporting Incidents after an Event
- DS3 - BHS Events - activities covered by BHS Insurance (coming soon)
- DS4 - Medical and Veterinary cover for BHS Events
- DS5a - Safeguarding in BHS volunteer committees - England, Wales & NI
- DS5b - Safeguarding in BHS volunteer committees - Scotland
- DS6 - Safeguarding at Events (coming soon)
- DS7 - First Aid qualification guidance for BHS Events (coming soon)
- DS8 - Covid-19 Event Resumption guidance
- DS9 - The Construction of Rings
- DS79 - Air Ambulance Support Guide
Supporting Documents and Templates
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- ACCIDENT REPORTING - Accident Incident and Near Miss Form Mounted
- ACCIDENT REPORTING - Accident Incident and Near Miss Form Unmounted
- BODY PROTECTORS - BHS Events Body Protector Standards 2025
- COVID-19 - BHS Covid-19 Risk Assessment Template for Events
- COVID-19 - BHS Covid-19 Event Contact Form
- HATS - BHS Event Hat Guide 2025
- H&S POLICY - BHS Events H&S Policy Statement Template
- HSE WEBSITE - More information on Risk Assessments and Reporting Accidents
- LOW FLYING - Information on how to report a large equine event to Joint Helicopter Command
- ORGANISERS CHECKLIST - BHS Event H&S Checklist for Organisers
- RISK ASSESSMENTS - BHS Event Risk Assessment Template
- SAFEGUARDING - BHS Safeguarding Plan Template
- SAFETY BRIEFING CHECKLIST - BHS Event Safety Briefing Checklist
- SAFETY FILE - BHS Event Safety File Template
- WELFARE - BHS Code of Conduct for Welfare of Horses at Events and Activities