E152:05 16 November 2005
Justin McCracken, Acting Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said today in response to the tragic incident in North Yorkshire earlier this week:
"On behalf of HSE I would like to express my sympathy to the family and friends of Joseph Lister, as well as to his fellow pupils and teachers, for whom this is a deeply shocking event.
"HSE believes very strongly in the educational value of well-planned visits and is a firm supporter of outdoor education. I would urge anybody who has an interest in educational visits, particularly those involving adventurous activities, to look at the School trips section of HSE's website, at http://www.hse.gov.uk/schooltrips. This gives straightforward advice for those involved in the management of school trips.
"Thousands of school trips take place every year without incident. We would not discourage such trips, as the benefits to pupils can be immense. Serious incidents, such as the one in the Yorkshire Dales on Monday, are extremely rare.
"HSE and North Yorkshire Police have commenced a joint investigation. It is too early to comment further, but if there are any lessons to be learnt from this tragedy they will be widely shared."
1. 14 year old Joseph Lister died on Monday 14 November whilst on a school caving trip at Manchester Hole in Nidderdale, near Pately Bridge, North Yorkshire .
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