EUSC COVID OPERATING PROCEDURES 

Written in Accordance with Phase Three regulations as specified by the Scottish Government and the RYA. 

Last Updated 10/08/2020

1. General Advice

All those attending an on the water or theory session does so at their own risk and it is their own decision to do so. At all times, attendees must adhere to Scottish government and RYA guidelines as well as those set out by EUSU and should not attend if they have any of the specified COVID-19 symptoms (namely a cough, high temperature or change in sense of taste or smell). If an attendee develops symptoms during the sessions, they should immediately withdraw and self isolate while they await testing. 

Every measure will be taken to reduce the chances of contamination, all those going afloat must accept that, in cases of difficulty afloat, there will be a cross contamination risk when the safety boat intervenes. Therefore, all those that go afloat must be confident in their skills and think twice about the weather conditions and ensure that their boat is rigged correctly and checked for any imminent breakages. The session lead has the authority to request a boat return to shore if they feel the sailors are unable to cope with conditions and therefore pose a risk. 

These procedures will be updated as guidelines from any governing body changes. 

2. Safety Cover Responsibilities and Risk Assessment 

• Although safety boats are usually manned by two, die to the social distancing requirements, these people should both be from the same household where possible, where this is not possible, safety cover should be provided by a single person who feels capable of fulfilling all safety duties alone. 

• In line with usual procedures, this safety boat driver must have RYA Powerboat Level 2 and would be desirable for them to also have RYA Safety Boat License. 

• The household providing safety cover must conduct all related activities for that day, this includes fuelling, launching and recovering the bobat, using the fuel trolley and using all the keys. They therefore must familiarise themselves with these processes and read Lowports operating procedures for using powerboats. 

• Safety drivers must also understand that in cases of medical emergency, they may have to break social distancing/cross contamination processes. 

• A record should be kept of who drives which powerboats and when, this would need to be done in conjunction with Lowport Centre, to ensure tracing possibilities. 

Task	Risk	Mitigation	Club Action
Collection of keys	Cross Contamination	Hands sanitized on entry, one person in charge of handling keys for the whole day. Contactless hand over.	Liaise with Low Port to ensure both parties follow same procedure
Man Over Board	Lack of social distancing.	Use a throw line or boarding ladders to avoid need for close contact. Safety driver to wear mask/gloves unless time sensitive. Distance both parties as much as possible when inside the powerboat.	Ensure there are thrown lines or ladders are present in the powerboats.Ensure PPE availble
Capsize	Lack of social distancing.	Use PPE if in contact with boat or people. Initially use vocal commands to aid the sailors to right the boat themselves, if this fails prioritise solutions like raiding of the mast tip, using the painter, pushing on the centre board while the sailors lying waiting to be scooped in the cockpit. PPE recommended whenever touching equipment. Ensure the safety of sailors as a priority at all times.	Ensure PPE available.
Gear Failure	Lack of Social Distancing	Boat to be returned to shore on a toe line not alongside. Crews to stay aboard their own crafts. PPE recommended for any cross craft contact.	Ensure boats have tow lines.  PPE available.
Minor Injury (not life threatening or in immediate need of first aid)	Lack of Social Distancing	Casualty stays in their own craft and are returned to shore by tow line where possible.Thoroughly clean boats of any blood or bodily fluids, report incident to Lowport.	Ensure boats have tow lines.
Major Injury (Life threatening or serious enough to make tow line recovery unsuitable.)	Lack of Social Distancing	Casualty bought aboard powerboat and immediately return to shore. Boat later recovered by tow line. PPE worn if time allows. Thoroughly clean both boats of any blood or bodily fluids, report incident to Lowport.	PPE available. Ensure boats have tow lines.
Storing and returning of powerboat	Cross contamination of surfaces	Ensure the same person is responsible for the boat all day, surfaces wiped down after use with alcohol wipes.	Cleaning products available.

3. Session Leads Responsibilities

• The Session lead should be a Committee member or previous member of the racing teams with a DI certificate, or someone who has previously displayed competency at the discretion of the Executive Committee. 

• They will be responsible for encouraging social distancing between all participants throughout the session. 

• Help to create a comfortable, welcoming atmosphere despite the new regulations. 

• Wherever possible, they should also be the safety boat drivers to ensure continuity of authority and single user for the keys. 

• As a club have a list of people capable of acting as session leads, and a group chat where there can be discussions about what works well and what could be improved upon. 

• Responsible for logging any first aid incidents and who uses the powerboat to Lowport so that accurate records can be kept. 

• Be responsible for making sure gloves, facemask, hand sanitizers and alcohol wipes are available at all times and they are disposed of in a plastic bag and not in park bins.

• Session leads have authority to make a call on the safety weather conditions based on the abilities and experience of attendees and whether it is likely the safety boat will have to break social distancing to help sailors in distress. 

4. Running Dinghy Sessions Risk Assessment 

Task	Risk	Mitigation	Club Action
Getting to Lowport	Lack of Distancing	Personal cars are encouraged but each car to only carry one household. Those without car access should get the train, adhering to all Scot Rail policies and wearing face masks.	Send travel information before the session
Getting Changed	Internal environments with close contact	Participants should arrive changed, or with base layers on to change in the car park. Access to toilets/changing rooms is at the discretion of Lowport Centre and should not be relied upon.	Liaise with Lowport on the issue.
Rigging and Degridding Boats	Close Contact	Hand sanitizer to be used on arrival. 2m distance should be kept from each other throughout, including with other users of the park. Each boat is assigned to a crew that will be sailing it throughout the day, they should one at a time collect their boat and move it to an area away from others to rig and derig. Launching and recovering should be done without help from other sailors.	Hand sanitizer available
On the Water Activities	Boats and their crews coming into close contact	Distance maintained between boats. This will be more difficult for race training sessions; suggested use of longer start/finish lines, more room given around marks and manouverse stopped before they enter close contact. No rafting/coming alongside for discussions.	Discussions with team members will be needed to establish the way they wish to train with greater distance between boats/how they will designate the boundary of a boat (1bl beyond the actual boat boundary?)
Participant Limitations	Mixing of multiple households	Maximum of 15 participants from 5 households including sessions leads and safety. Current guidelines do not advise mixed households within dinghies, therefore until this changes only those within the same households can sail together. Solo sailing allowed if they feel competent and the session lead agrees.	Plan session attendance before hand, Teams Captain and Dinghy Sec to devise system.
Boat Storage	Contaminated Surfaces	Boats to be fully washed and wiped down with alcohol wipes after each session, with particular attention paid to tiller/rudder/sheets that have had the most contact with sailors. Preferably 72 hours between boat usage, if not possible boats should be wiped down again before next use.	Ensure cleaning products are available at all sessions.

5. Club Actions Pre Resuming Sessions 

• Acquire PPE in the form of facemask and gloves for safety cover providers. 

• Liaise with Lowport Centre to ensure both parties procedures are compatible and that both EUSU and Lowport are happy with the way sessions are going to be run. 

• Seek guidance from EUSU to check they are happy with proposed procedures. 

• Create a list of session leads, train them in what the role entails and create a method of communication between them. 

• Ensure powerboats have towlines and boarding ladders if possible. 

• Create logs of who attends sessions and sails in what boats.

• Communicate with the wider club the new procedures and how the club will operate.