Overnight Camping - People
Staff
Staff members are those adults who provide the supervisory, instructional and educational elements of the activity. All staff members must be approved by the school council.
All staff members must comply with current Departmental police check requirements or the Working with Children Check.
A teacher registered with the Victorian Institute of Teaching and either employed by the Department or the school council must be present and have overall responsibility for the activity.
Where not directly responsible for the instruction of the activity or assisting the instructor, the teacher responsible for the activity must understand the activity and the environment in which it will be conducted. This teacher must confer with the designated instructor about the supervisory role and establish areas of responsibility. If this teacher is not the designated instructor, he/she is to act on the advice of the designated instructor on technical safety issues.
Any staff member with a known medical condition that might compromise the group’s risk management plan should make accompanying staff aware of this condition. Issues of confidentiality and privacy will arise in any such disclosure.
Experience and qualifications
Staff involved in the planning and conduct of the activity should have sufficient knowledge and experience of the activity and its environment to operate in all foreseeable conditions.
There is no nationally recognised qualification for conducting overnight camps.
Documentation of Staff Qualifications and Experience (Word - 132Kb) must be used by the designated instructor to document staff qualifications/experience in lieu of qualifications.
The designated instructor should have the following skills and experience:
- regular and recent experience in managing students in a comparable camping environment
- experience in planning a camp that is appropriate for student groups
- experience in the selection of campsites
- skills in interpreting and responding to weather conditions.
Where outdoor adventure activities are to be combined with an overnight camping experience, staff must also refer to the relevant activity safety guideline(s).
At least one other accompanying staff member should have sufficient camping experience. That person must:
- be able to assume a supervisory role during the activity
- be competent in emergency response procedures
- have conferred with the instructor to establish the emergency response and supervision responsibilities.
Documentation of Staff Qualifications and Experience (Word - 132Kb) can be used to document staff qualifications/experience of accompanying staff member(s).
Where an external contractor is chosen to run all or part of this activity, the guidelines for the use of External providers should be followed.
Supervision
Effective supervision is a critical factor in managing risk in the outdoors.
A minimum of two staff members must be present for each activity. One staff member is to have responsibility for instruction in the activity and the other is to assist the instructor.
The following table shows the minimum staff-to-student ratios for overnight camping. These must be applied when establishing the instructional and supervision strategy for the camp.
| Activity | Staff required | Student numbers |
|---|---|---|
| Overnight Camping | 2 | 1-20 |
| 3 | 21-30 |
Different ratios may be required if the excursion includes other outdoor adventure activities. Please refer to the relevant ratios for each activity published in other sections on this site. When camps are conducted in more remote areas or with groups with special needs, consideration must be given to more intensive staffing ratios. If overnight camping takes place as part of a bushwalk, please refer to ratios provided in the Bushwalking guidelines.
Decisions about staff numbers and suitability for the activity should be based on the:
- age, maturity and gender of students
- ability and experience of students
- needs of individuals
- dynamics of the student group
- experience, qualifications and skills of staff
- location of the activity
- anticipated conditions at the location.
The teacher in charge is responsible for the supervision strategy, which must be endorsed by the school council as part of the excursion approval process. Staff members should supervise students according to this strategy.
If a decision is made to vary the recommended allocation of supervising staff, reasons for the variation must be documented. The minimum requirements for this activity are provided above.
Informed consent
The school must receive consent from parents or guardians before their child may participate in adventure activities.
Informed consent should be based on an understanding of:
- the educational purpose of the activity
- the nature and details of the activity
- the supervision strategy
- other information deemed relevant by the school, parents or guardians.
Informed consent must be given in writing and signed by parents or guardians.
First aid
At least one member of staff responsible for each group of students must hold, as a minimum, a current (within 3 years) level two first aid qualification, a current (within 12 months) Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) qualification and have a first aid kit applicable to the level of training.
Staff members must carefully consider the nature and location of the excursion, as well as the medical history of the students, to determine the level of first aid training required by staff. For example, if any student in the group has a history of anaphylaxis and may require the use of an epi-pen, appropriately trained staff must be present.