Clearing ice

Advice from the Parish Council insurer about clearing snow and ice is pasted in below. The good news is that we can do it. The bad news is well...read on. 

The advice from the Government is that there is no law preventing Parish Councils from clearing snow or ice from public spaces. They state that it is unlikely the Parish Council will be sued or held legally responsible for any injuries if the area has been cleared carefully.

When the clearance programme has been agreed, risk assessments must be carried out in writing and kept on Parish Council files.

Employees and volunteers must receive the correct training to clear snow and ice (this might need to include manual handling training) and must be in possession of any personal protective equipment that is required i.e. correct footwear.

If the PC does the job negligently, it will be liable for claims arising from its negligent actions.

Even if a Parish Council only provides the bins and grit and does not organise the volunteers, it cannot escape all liability if things go wrong and the council knew or ought to have known what was happening and failed to act with sufficient care.

Clear snow or ice early in the day, it is easier to clear soft snow than compacted snow. If you remove the top layer of snow in the morning any sun that day will help melt the snow or ice underneath. Apply a layer of salt before nightfall to stop the area refreezing.

Take care in deciding to where you move the snow - making sure that you do not block roads, paths or drains. Clear the middle of the path first so you have a safe surface to walk on. Then shovel the snow from the centre of the path to the sides.

There looks like more than enough to keep you awake at night. We already spend a mountain  of time (a mountain? maybe a set of Himalayan peaks) checking and rechecking the condition of the play equipment we have installed. The risk assessment/health and safety regime to clear some snow and ice looks equally forbidding. Ultimately insurers, and ambulance chasing legal firms are making just about any public action impossible. 

Of course the current government was on the case with Lord Young all teed up to look at the health and safety culture. Lord Young unfortunately hadn't noticed there was a massive recession and got blown away in the political blizzard. So he was probably not the best person to take this forward.