SCO/127/08 12 August 2008

Top tips to safeguard our gamekeepers

As the Scottish grouse shooting season gets underway today – the Glorious 12th – the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is reminding gamekeepers to ensure they take appropriate safety precautions when carrying out their daily work.

Gamekeepers face many dangers in the work place with a key area of concern being lone working.  It is part and parcel of the job that gamekeepers often work alone but the potential risks this entails can easily be cut by ensuring a system is in place for lone workers to keep in touch with people and also a means of communication to contact the emergency services if need be.

HSE Inspector Lawrence Murray said:

"Grouse shooting as a sport is big business in rural Scotland and an important source of employment for many areas.  It is also important as a method of land management in controlling predators - however it does bring risks to those involved in this sector. 

"Employers should ensure that all precautions are taken to cope with the hazards that lone workers are exposed to. When gamekeepers work alone in isolated locations a system is needed for dealing with emergencies. As a minimum a check ought to be made at the end of each work period to make sure the gamekeeper has returned safely. In the event of illness or injury it will be vital to know where they are, so think about providing mobiles phones or radios where appropriate."

Although the shooting season is one of the busiest times of the year for Scotland’s moorland and lowland gamekeepers, the job remit of gamekeepers as we know them changes throughout the year and often extends to include deer stalking, working as a water bailiff or a ghillie.

HSE offered the following safety advice to Scotland’s gamekeepers:

• Training - adequate training and information should be provided for any work that involves specific equipment including quad bikes, pesticides and foresting and use of chainsaws.
• Weather protection - employers should provide adequate clothing to protect gamekeepers against adverse weather conditions including emergency survival equipment such as thermal bags.
• First Aid training should be provided, especially to lone workers.
• Water - adequate training, appropriate safety equipment and working practices for those working in/ near water – i.e. using life jackets and considering other methods instead of wading into water such as roping together.

Although it’s the glorious 12th, which is all about shooting however, there maybe time for other recreational activities such as fishing so please consider:

• Overhead power lines - electricity can arc across from overhead power lines onto carbon fibre fishing rods.  Carefully survey any area you are going to work in to make sure a minimum distance of 15m can be maintained between the lines and any equipment you will be using.

Notes to editors

1. More information on health and safety advice for gamekeepers can be found at http://news.hse.gov.uk/2007/11/19/revised-health-and-safety-guide-for-gamekeepers/
2. Information on safe handling of guns can be found at http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/as7.pdf
3. For further details on latest HSE statistics in Scotland, see the summary of statistics of occupational ill health, safety and enforcement 2006/07 at http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/regions/scotland.htm
4. HSE published the latest annual work related fatal injury statistics on 26 July 2007 which can be viewed at:http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/index.htm

Public enquiries

Call HSE's InfoLine, Tel: 08701 545500,
or write to: HSE InfoLine, Caerphilly Business Park, Caerphilly CF83 3GG.

Press enquiries (Journalists only)

News desk: Katy Jeffrey 0131 244 9062
Out of hours: 020 7928 8382

HSE information and press releases can be accessed on the Internet: http://www.hse.gov.uk

Information on HSE in Scotland can be found at www.hse.gov.uk/scotland

Issued on behalf of HSE by COI News and PR Scotland.