Key points to remember

• Don't let your fear of things going wrong prevent you from changing things for the better.
  
  
• Innovation and creativity depend on taking risks. Taking calculated risks can be exciting and motivating for volunteers.
  
  
• The purpose of risk assessment is to assess the impact that events could have and also the likelihood of them happening.
  
  
• It is not your responsibility to eliminate all risks but rather to be able to demonstrate how you have recognised the risks involved and taken reasonable precautions against them causing harm.
  
  
• Risk assessments should be performed periodically and when you are planning to start a new project which extends your area or scope of your work. It's good practice to keep written records of your assessment, this is a legal requirement for organisations with more than five staff.
  
  
• It's important to be aware of your legal responsibilities to volunteers and staff.
  
  
• A key part of managing risks is ensuring that volunteers and staff are aware of the risk that their roles entail and that they have relevant training.
  
  
• The chances of getting bad press or harmful publicity can be minimised by nurturing good relationships with local press and submitting press releases whenever you do anything newsworthy.
  

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