When carrying out research or participating in an activity it is essential that you are competent to undertake this work. If you are not competent you are working in an unsafe manner. To prevent this from happening, you must assess if you, or a member of your team has the necessary competences to safely undertake the activity. This should be done during the risk assessment and prior to commencing the activity. 

If you don’t have the necessary competence, you must seek training to develop the skill(s) required to safely undertake the activity. To help with this, the college provides a wide range of formal, free training courses 

It is also possible that no training courses exist for what may be a highly skilled and specialised activity. If you believe you have the skills necessary but have no formal training record to prove this, it is possible to self-certify. This provides a record of your competence and evidence that competence has been assessed if there is an accident. For further information on this process contact the Departmental Safety Officer (DSO). 

Please note: All staff and students should have completed the basic safety training during their induction (Safety requirements for new staff and students).