Health & Safety

Regulations and rules that apply while enjoying the waterways

What to expect

Please be aware that Scunthorpe Amalgamated Anglers are a family orientated club, please be watchful of your family or guest. Water is a big attraction to children so please do not let them wander or run around any of our fishing venues.

WEIL’S DISEASE – DON’T LET IT HAPPEN TO YOU ! WEIL’S DISEASE is a bacterial infection carried in rat’s urine which contaminates water and the banks of lakes, rivers, canals and ponds. It is a serious disease in human beings that requires hospital treatment.

The early symptoms are similar to those of flu and normally start three to 19 days after exposure to contaminated water. Every year people die from this disease which is unnecessary because it is easily treated if diagnosed in time.

There are a number of precautions you can take:

Cover any cuts, sores or scratches with waterproof plasters or gloves.
Disinfect any wounds that occur at the waterside.
Wash your hands (in clean water) of cover food with a wrapper before you eat.
Do not put your hand(s) in your mouth after immersing in fishery water and never place bait of fishing line in your mouth.
Do not touch dead animals, especially rats.
If you develop flu-like symptoms that persist, tell your doctor that you may have been exposed to Leptospirosis so that he or she can consider it in the diagnosis.

Do not leave food, groundbait or bait on the bankside which will attract rats.

Lyme disease

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that can be spread to humans by infected ticks. It’s usually easier to treat if it’s diagnosed early.

Symptoms of Lyme disease

Many people with early symptoms of Lyme disease develop a circular red skin rash around a tick bite.

The rash can appear up to 3 months after being bitten by a tick and usually lasts for several weeks.

Most rashes appear within the first 4 weeks.

A classic bull's-eye Lyme disease rash on an arm. — The rash is often described as looking like a bull’s-eye on a dartboard.

A circular red Lyme disease rash on an arm. — The skin will be red and the edges may feel slightly raised.

Not everyone with Lyme disease gets the rash. Some people also have flu-like symptoms in the early stages, such as:

a high temperature, or feeling hot and shivery
headaches
muscle and joint pain
tiredness and loss of energy

Other symptoms of Lyme disease

Most tick bites are harmless

Only a small number of ticks are infected with the bacteria that cause Lyme disease.

A tick bite can only cause Lyme disease in humans if the tick has already bitten an infected animal.

But it’s still important to be aware of ticks and to safely remove them as soon as possible, just in case.

Ticks that may cause Lyme disease are found all over the UK, but high-risk areas include grassy and wooded areas in southern England and the Scottish Highlands.

What are ticks?

How to spot and remove ticks

Important

Tick bites are not always painful. You may not notice a tick unless you see it on your skin.

Regularly check your skin and your children’s or pets’ skin after being outdoors.

To remove a tick safely:

Use fine-tipped tweezers or a tick-removal tool. You can buy these from some pharmacies, vets and pet shops.
Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible.
Slowly pull upwards, taking care not to squeeze or crush the tick. Dispose of it when you have removed it.
Clean the bite with antiseptic or soap and water.

The risk of getting ill is low. You do not need to do anything else unless you become unwell.

A picture of a tick being removed with tweezers. — How to remove a tick safely.

Non-urgent advice:See a GP if:

you have been bitten by a tick or visited an area in the past month where infected ticks are found

and you get:

flu-like symptoms – such as feeling hot and shivery, headaches, aching muscles or feeling sick, or
a circular red rash

Tell them if you have been in forests or grassy areas.

What happens at your appointment

Your GP will ask about your symptoms and consider any rash or recent tick bites you know about.

Lyme disease can be difficult to diagnose. It has similar symptoms to other conditions and there’s not always an obvious rash.

Two types of blood test are available to help confirm or rule out Lyme disease. But these tests are not always accurate in the early stages of the disease.

You may need to be retested if you still have Lyme disease symptoms after a negative result.

Treatment from a GP

If your GP thinks you might have Lyme disease, they’ll prescribe a 3-week course of antibiotics. It’s important to finish the course, even if you start to feel better.

Some people with severe symptoms will be referred to a specialist in hospital for injections of antibiotics.

Most people with Lyme disease get better after antibiotic treatment. This can take months for some people, but the symptoms should improve over time.

People with symptoms of Lyme disease that last a long time after treatment may be referred to a specialist in hospital for advice and more blood tests.

Important

Some websites offer tests and treatment for Lyme disease that may not be supported by scientific evidence.

Speak to your doctor for advice before buying tests or treatment online.

How to avoid tick bites

To reduce the risk of being bitten:

cover your skin while walking outdoors and tuck your trousers into your socks
use insect repellent on your clothes and skin – products containing DEET are best
stick to paths whenever possible
wear light-coloured clothing so ticks are easier to spot and brush off

Ongoing symptoms

A few people who are diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease continue to have symptoms, like tiredness, aches and loss of energy, that can last for years.

These symptoms are often compared to fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

It’s not clear why this happens to some people and not others. This means there’s also no agreed treatment.

Speak to your doctor if your symptoms come back after treatment with antibiotics or they do not start to improve.

Your doctor may be able to offer you further support if needed, such as:

referral for a care needs assessment
telling your employer, school or higher education institution that you require a gradual return to activities
communicating with children and families’ social care

LOOK OUT ! – LOOK UP !

ADVICE ON SAFE FISHING NEAR OVERHEAD ELECTRIC POWER LINES

Several people have died and others have been seriously injured whilst using carbon fibre rod and poles near overhead power lines. The following advice is designed to prevent these events happening.

Because rods and poles containing carbon fibre conduct electricity, they are particularly dangerous when used near overhead electric power lines. Remember that electricity can jump gaps and a rod does not even have to touch an electric line to cause a lethal current to flow.
Many overhead electric power lines are supported by wood poles which could be mistaken for telegraph poles. These overhead lines may carry electricity up to 132,000 volts.

The height of high voltage overhead power lines can be as low as 17ft and they are therefore within easy reach of carbon fibre rod or pole. Remember that overhead lines may not be readily visible from the ground. They may be concealed by hedges or by a dark background. Make sure you “look out” and “look up” to check for overhead lines before fishing begins.
In general, the minimum safe fishing distance from an overhead electric power line is two rod/pole lengths from the overhead line (measured along the ground).

When pegging out for matches or competitions, organisers and competitors should, in general, ensure that no peg is nearer to an overhead electric power line than 30 metres (measured along the ground).
For further advice on safe fishing at specific locations please contact your local Electricity Board.

Finally, remember that is dangerous for any object to get too close to overhead electric power lines, particularly if they object is an electrical conductor, eg a lead cored fishing line or damp fishing line or rod.
Published by the Electricity Council in consultation with Electricity Boards, Angling Trade Association, National Federation of Anglers, Water Authorities Associations and British Waterways Board..

Whilst every care has been taken to provide a robust template the organisations who have developed the document cannot accept liability for any omissions or issues caused by its use.

Policy Statement

Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club is committed to ensuring that it will do all that is reasonably practicable to prevent injury and damage to property. We will have due regard for protecting all other people who come into contact with the Clubs activities.

When dealing with health and safety issues officials, members, and volunteers carrying out activities have a clear understanding of the need to operate within the context of this policy and arrangements.

Officials, members and volunteers involved in events or work parties will take all reasonable steps to safeguard all those taking part in activities and those who may be affected by them.

Scunthorpe Amalgamated Anglers will cooperate with other organisations (landowners etc) to ensure risks are properly controlled

Health and Safety Arrangements – Duty of Care

Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club requires that all people involved in organizing activities, work parties and day to day management consider the consequences of their acts and omissions and ensure that those acts/or omissions do not give rise to a foreseeable risk of injury to any other person

Risk Assessment

Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club will ensure that suitable risk assessments are carried out and the results of the assessments are implemented. The aim of Risk Assessment is to avoid harm and to promote the health, safety and welfare of all involved or who may be affected by an activity (work or leisure). As members of Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club, administrators and event organizers have not only a moral but also a legal responsibility to ensure that club activities and any organised events are as safe as practicably possible.

Risk assessments will be carried out with a view of minimizing risk. As well as reducing the likelihood of accidents happening; in the event of an accident it will also reduce the chance of serious injury or ill health

Risk Assessment procedures require the Assessors to consider

Hazards – anything that has potential to cause harm.
Who could be affected?
Measures already in place – to avoid possible harm.

Risk – the likelihood that something could happen on a scale of ‘high’, ‘medium’, ‘low’

Further actions – what more can be reasonably done to reduce the likelihood of an accident happening.

The Risk Assessment document will be completed and signed by the responsible person (administrator or organizer), key actions will be conveyed (where appropriate read and understood) to all participating so that they know and understand what is expected of them.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Person in charge (E.g. Chairman)

Ensuring this policy is adhered to
Ensure Risk Assessments have been carried out
Brief other officials/participants on all matters relating to organisational activities especially risk management and allocation of equipment and resources

Officials & Organizers

Club officials, administrators and/or organizers (persons in charge of a work activity or events) are primarily responsible for ensuring safety is properly managed. He/she has the responsibility to undertake all measures available to ensure the safety and well being of all persons taking part in an activity/event and those who could be affected by the event.

The success of an activity/event depends on effective management. The event organizer must ensure that there is effective:

Planning
Delegation
Resources allocation (people and equipment)
Decisions making
Clear (and effective) communication
Responsibilities of volunteers

Turn up at venue in sufficient time to prepare for the event/activity.
Attend briefing (and debriefing)
Carry out allocated duties in a professional manner
Specific procedures when working with young people:-

Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club has a Child Protection Policy, all officials, organizers and volunteers carrying out activities for the club must complete a declaration that they know of the policy and will comply with its contents.

People working for Scunthorpe Amalgamated Angling Club must be aware of the legal requirements regarding the supervision young people.

First aid & Incident reporting

All responsible persons must have attended basic first aid instruction.

Incident reporting procedure

In the event of an incident or accident involving personal injury the following procedures must be followed:

All injuries other than minor cuts and abrasions should be recorded on ‘accident forms’. It is a requirement that both the injured party and the responsible person sign the form. If the circumstances of the accident are not clear – notes of the accident must be made on the form.
If there are doubts about the nature or seriousness of the injury, the responsible person will ensure the injured person is given appropriate medical attention as soon as possible.

ALL SERIOUS INCIDENTS MUST BE REPORTED TO An S.A.A. COMMITTEE MEMBER IMMEDIATELY, THEN IN WRITING TO THE CLUB SECRETARY THEREAFTER.

Health & Safety

What to expect

Lyme disease

Symptoms of Lyme disease

Most tick bites are harmless

How to spot and remove ticks

Important

Non-urgent advice:See a GP if:

What happens at your appointment

Treatment from a GP

Important

How to avoid tick bites

Ongoing symptoms

LOOK OUT ! – LOOK UP !

Policy Statement

Health and Safety Arrangements – Duty of Care

Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment procedures require the Assessors to consider

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Person in charge (E.g. Chairman)

Officials & Organizers

First aid & Incident reporting

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