Local reporting and recording of Safety incidents

What to do promptly

• Inform your Lead Volunteer – Contact and inform your Group and District Lead Volunteer as soon as possible.
• Record what happened - Capture the key facts clearly and accurately while they're fresh. Photos or short videos may be taken where appropriate (for example: site, location or equipment).
• Keep records safe - Accurate local records may be required for safety learning review, insurance claims, or follow-up with UK Headquarters Safety team.

Local reporting and storage

Local first aid and incident records

You must maintain a local first-aid and incident record for your group or unit and use it to log all incidents, including those not submitted to UK Headquarters. This will help you identify trends, support local learning and sharing of how to do this better, and your team's planning to keep Scouting safe.
 
A local first-aid and incident record can be either a paper-based or a digital document. You should consider how to enable non-Scout users at your meeting place to report using your local tool, making sure it complies with your data protection and retention policy.  

Parent/carer communication

When an incident occurs, the leader-in-charge should communicate with parents or carers promptly and with sensitivity. Be factual, concise, and reassuring about the actions taken.

Unity Insurance offers a Personal Accident and Medical Expenses (PAME) policy and coverage for all planned Scouting activities. Parents or carers can find information about this cover and learn how to make a claim by visiting https://www.unityinsuranceservices.co.uk/scout-insurance/accident-medical-insurance. Please inform parents/carers that this is available.

Data Protection considerations

All incident information must be stored in line with Data Protection Act, GDPR and Scouts' data protection guidance:

• Keep securely (locked cabinet or restricted digital access)
• Limit access to those with a legitimate need
• Never store records on personal devices unless authorised and secure
• When using third-party systems to store or share incident information, conduct due diligence on the tool to make sure it is secure and that access is limited to those who need it. See our Scout Unit Data Protection Toolkit: Step #9, which focuses on third parties, for more guidance.
• If a parent, carer or other individual requests access to incident or local first aid records, this is a data protection matter and must be handled in line with Scouts’ and local data protection policies and guidance. Incident data should not be shared informally. The Scout Unit Data Protection Toolkit should be consulted for guidance on responding to data requests and on the steps to follow. 

Data retention and privacy

• Keep local incident records for the required retention period as outlined in your local Data Protection and Retention Policy – see our Scout Unit Data Protection Toolkit: Step #11 for further information and guidance.
• Store securely with appropriate access controls.
• Do not share identifiable information beyond Scout HQ, learning, or compliance needs.
• Review and securely dispose of records once the retention period ends
• Incident records may contain personal data relating to more than one individual. Any request for access to this information must make sure that third-party personal data is protected and handled lawfully, in line with Scouts’ and local data protection policies and guidance.

Information to record

For each incident, include:

• Full name and membership type (Beaver, Cub, Scout, non-member, visitor, site users, etc.)
• Date and time of the incident
• Activity being carried out at the time
• Nature and severity of injury or illness
• Clear, factual description of what happened
• First aid given or other actions taken (include times if possible)
• Whether any external agencies were involved (e.g. police, ambulance, coastguard, mountain rescue)
• Was this activity externally led or not?
• Name, role and contact details of the person recording the incident
• Details of witnesses to what happened
• Did the incident need to be reported to UK Headquarters?

Recording tips

• Try to note down actions and times as events unfold, if possible
• Make sure you have noted who was there and their contact details in case you need to get in touch
• If appropriate, take pictures of the location sensitively to help record what happened - this assists with learning and remembering details
• Keep a record of all communications made during and after the incident
• Don't be concerned about establishing fault - focus on accurate facts