How risks can vary according to age, needs, ability & environment if water play

[Charmed38]

I need some help with this question How risks can vary according to age, needs, ability and the environment if it the activity is water play

Hope some can help me

[Doodah]

How risks can vary according to age, needs, ability and the environment if it the activity is water play

Think about carrying out a risk assessment on a water play activity according to the above criteria and how you would then differentiate the activity accordingly, eg age what supervision do the children need? what temperature should the water be? should the children wear aprons, all over protection or just a nappy? How deep should the water be? needs does the child have a physical or learning difficulty which requires extra support, does the child have a phobia of water? ability do the children understand the rules of water play eg no drinking the water, no splashing other children etc and the environment is the water play outside where a wet child may get cold? or inside where the floor might get slippery?

You might find this link helpful : http://www.silkysteps.com/forum/showthread.php?p=28465

About child development - ages and stages on page 76+ and about risks on page 159

[Charmed38]

thanks for the reply doodah

[Ruthierhyme]

You may also find this booklet helps:

Accidents and Child development


You'll see that there are many that appear right across all the ages and these are ones that you will always be dealing with. Slips and trips can be considered as falls

Look at each one and ask yourself why a child of that age may be specifically susceptible to that risk - is it because of the height they are - whilst upright, reaching, jumping, sitting, crawling, lying, the access they have to something - is it in reach, just out of reach, out of reach, large or small enough to get in/over/under, the possibility of someone else doing something to them - snatching, knocking/bumping, their capacity and capability to defend, protect or remove themselves from the danger/risk.

Ages - what age groups do you work with and how do you think age changes the way a child might be.
Their developmental norms, strength, dexterity, skill?

Needs - what sort of needs might be involved with children?
Medical, physical, emotional, intellectual?

Ability - how does ability change?
through development & time, practice, perfection, polish/refinement, assessment/reassessment - look at things again, find out more, problem solve, reflect, become solution searchers and solution providers? Ability on wikipedia

Environment - what is the environment like, what is in it and what could be in it.
What's your setting or work placement like?

Risks can and will vary according to an individual's age, their needs, their ability and the environment that they are in because everyone is uniquely different.

Where you provide an activity - you provide a risk.

And the risk will change as you ask yourself - what is the child/young person/ adults age, what is their abililty, what is their need, what is the environment.

If the activity is water:
Age: Babies
Ability: who are crawling may be able to pull themselves up, so that they
Need: can see what's going on, join in or just to become upright.
Environment: If the water tray in on a frame with castors the child may pull it over trying to stand, or push it forwards loosing their footing.

Risk would be a fall, bruising, cuts, bumping their head/concussion, spilling water that may cause risk to others.

If the water tray is placed on the ground, a baby, Age crawling or older children may be able to get into it Ability. Need might be curiosity - they may be able to see the water suface more easily if it's at floor level and be curious about its tactility/qualities and want to experiment by using their senses - sight, touch, taste, hearing, smell & emmersion maybe. Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivation

The risks are still a fall, bruising, cuts, bumping head/concussion, spillage but there is now also a much larger risk/probability of drowning because of a child's
age what is possible and what the the expectations are of a person at a chronologically given time.
ability what they can actually do
need what needs to be provided for them to take part safely or what they personally want ..
environment - the water level is high enough to enable drowning and is openly available/accessible because of it being on the floor - most can get to it.

So the water tray's risk has changed because of the child's individuality - age, needs, ability and where the tray has been placed - the environment.

Falls Suffocation Choking Poisoning Strangulation Burns and scalds Electrical burns Drowning - Children can drown in water 2" or 5cm deep. Source:

CAPT Child safety week factsheet on drowning

Cuts and bruises

Suffocation isn't an obvious risk with a water tray activity - however if you provide towels, blankets to dry up with ensure you know where they are and how they are being used.

Risk of choking - do you put small items into the water for babies to play with or do you change the risk and add only large items - ones babies can grasp, mouth and handle safely.

Risk of poisoning/contamination/cross infection - ensure water is taken from a safe place & changed regularly

Burns and scalds aren't an obvious risk, but skin damage through water play is:
medical need - eczema & the need for cream to be applied after water play.
medical need - hypothermia & chills. Have changes of clothing available, roll up sleeves, provide waterproof aprons. Extremes are if water play is outdoors and provided without protective clothing during the winter.

Emotional & physical wellbeing risk: keep water play positive, some children may be wary of water on the face and may not like the thought of upsetting adults if clothing becomes wet - reassure that everything is on hand to enjoy the activity safely

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Can you remember a water activity that you've been involved with?
Did you have to consider how to provide it?
What were the age of the children that would/could be taking part?
What abilities of the children did you have to think about - reach, grasp
Were there any needs involved - allergies, sensitivity to fragrances of soap ..
Where was the activity set up and why there?

I hope this helps a little more for you
xx