Basic Risk Management for Field Trips, along with Informed Consent and Waiver Templates
Click on the following to see guidelines for risk assessment and management preparatory to a field trip:
For field trips with significant risks (i.e. most field trips), it may be advisable to require participants to read and understand, complete, and sign an informed consent or waiver. Informed consents should be used in cases where participation in a field trip is mandatory to gain credit for a University course or program; where participation is optional, a waiver should be used instead. Consult with the Director of Risk Management and Access to Information to ascertain whether such forms are recommended and, if so, which form to use. If it is concluded that an informed consent or waiver should be required, the following templates can be adapted (click to access) - again, in consultation with the Director of Risk Management and Access to Information:
- Informed Consent Template (Word Document)
- Waiver Template (Word Document)
Once completed and signed, the consents/waivers should be kept securely in hard copy or electronic (scanned) format for ten years by the office responsible for the field trip.
Never, however, forget that an informed consent or waiver is NOT a substitute for good, considered, thorough risk management but merely, always, a secondary support for it.