Overview
An outdoor activity company has been fined £10,000 for safety failings after a 12-year-old boy, Kayden Walker, tragically drowned during a riverboarding session on the River Tay in 2019.
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) stated:
“Kayden’s tragic death could have been prevented had the company ensured a safe system of work was in place to allow participants to safely negotiate the weir.”
We would encourage everyone to review the full Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) news statement.
Lessons Learnt
This tragic incident brings to the fore the devastating consequences that can result from a lack of safety management in the course of outdoor or adventurous activities.
The key areas of concern highlighted by the Crown are:
- The company had insufficient measures in place to ensure the health, safety, and wellbeing of participants, particularly of those who cannot swim
- The company had a lack of safe systems of work in place to enable participants to safely negotiate the river and weir feature
- The risk assessments the company had carried out were inadequate and had an absence of safety control measures
This tragedy serves as a crucial reminder for all involved in delivering or supporting outdoor activity to ensure that safety is managed appropriately at all times. In addition, this incident emphasises the importance of safe systems, considered risk management and appropriate qualifications and training for those deploying and those delivering the activity.