Jump-start for trampoline parks with new Primary Authority partnership

Health and safety has just been made simpler for trampoline park operators running multiple facilities across the country, thanks to a new partnership.

Health and safety and quality management expert, Right Directions, has partnered with South Northamptonshire Council (SNC) and Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) to form what’s known as a Primary Authority partnership.

This government legislation makes it easier for businesses that operate in more than one local authority area by enabling them to seek regulatory advice from a single source that can then be applied to all their facilities, no matter where they are located.

The partnership will see SNC act as the Primary Authority for health and safety, food safety and environmental protection, whilst NCC is responsible for trading standards across Right Directions’ trampoline park clients.

Oxygen Freejumping’s Executive Director, Stephen Wilson, explained some of the benefits: “Trampoline parks are still a new concept in the UK, and so there is a lack of fundamental uniform standards that Environmental Health Officers (EHO) can review and work from. As a result, each EHO provides a slightly different view on the appropriate practices. Just minor variations in guidance are impossible to implement as we try to develop uniform and measurable processes across all of our parks.”

Gill Twell, Head of Development at Right Directions, which also delivers Sport England’s Quest quality scheme, ukactive’s Code of Practice and accreditation for the ASA’s Learn to Swim Pathway, said: “Our partnership will provide guidance for both businesses and regulators in an industry where there is currently a gap in regulation and published best practice.

“We have created the UK’s only Trampoline Park Safety Operating Plan (TPSOP), which sets out specific guidance on how a trampoline park should operate on a day to day basis, as well as health and safety management processes for the entire building. This puts us in a prime position to offer advice to any company running or looking to run a facility, as well as to any council that receives an application from a trampoline park operator. Through assured advice we can drive up standards and promote a consistent approach from regulators, ultimately ensuring better protection for all.”

Cllr Dermot Bambridge, SNC’s portfolio holder for environmental services said: “The Primary Authority partnership with Right Directions will aim to ensure consistent health and safety standards, so that anyone using this type of facility can rest assured the parks are following the correct guidelines.”

Wilson concluded: “Quite simply Right Directions’ Primary Authority provides a coordinated means of engaging with EHOs rather than having different relationships for each of our sites. Undoubtedly this will save us money, and as we grow more and more the efficiencies will grow too. But more importantly we will create additional time to implement new initiatives. It is very difficult to capture and implement the feedback from multiple health authorities, you tend to focus on managing the relationship rather than creating a partnership – this partnership will change that.”

Right Directions’ work with trampoline parks can provide other councils with information and evidence of compliance through assured advice. This could include procedures and standards, as well as recommendations about how trampoline parks can operate safely.

Right Directions STITCH accident analysis tool, which is endorsed by Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) and the Institute of Qualified Lifeguards (IQL), also enables operators to benchmark and monitor the type and level of accidents occurring across the UK. STITCH is powered by DataHub, a virtual repository for sports and leisure data, holding information from more than 157 operators who collectively run over 1100 sites.

– ends –

Editor’s notes:
Right Directions Management provides health and safety and quality management support to the leisure industry, specialising in local authority and trust-managed sites, as well as smaller independent operators. Right Directions, which delivers Quest on behalf of Sport England and ukactive’s Code of Practice, has more than 60 years experience within its field. www.rightdirections.co.uk

For further information contact:
Abigail Harris at Big Fish Public Relations
Tel: 07738 331019
Email: abigail@bigfishpublicrelations.co.uk