Social Nature Movement has delivered quality outdoor adventure programmes in a safe and supportive manor for many years. Health and Safety is ingrained in our business and it’s something that we take very seriously in all our destinations. It’s the primary reason we’re still operating with a very clean track record! Our activities are all facilitated by experienced and friendly outdoor instructors who provide safe, fun and educational sessions.
Adventurous activities involve inherent hazards and potential risks, often coupled with the severity of hazards and the likelihood of risks.
Hazard: ‘anything’ that can cause harm. Hazards might be rocks, trees, water (drowning, floods), wildlife, humans, heights (falls, falling objects), machines, tools, weather (hypothermia).
Risk: the potential of something happening. Risks could be death, serious injury and/or emotional harm.
Adventurous activities offered by SNM could be dangerous if they’re not approached with care and responsibility. Participation in such activities is voluntary and not compulsory.
Hazards and risks are managed using a hierarchy of controls to choose the most effective control measures starting with elimination, then minimisation, substitution and isolation. Further measures take on administration controls and personal protective equipment if risks and hazards remain.
An Adventure Activity is an activity:
For further information visit What is meant by and adventure activity.
Safety in the adventure activities sector is mainly regulated through the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the Adventure Activities Regulations.
Under the Act, adventure activity operators and all other people conducting a business or undertaking are required to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that their work does not put at risk the safety of their workers or other persons. This includes, for example, ensuring the right equipment is provided and that workers have the necessary training to manage the risks from their work.
The regulations require all adventure activity operators to be registered with the NZ Adventure Activities Certification Scheme (refer FAQ 1) and pass a safety audit at least once every three years. Audits are conducted by independent safety auditors against a safety audit standard for adventure activities published by WorkSafe.
In addition to these health and safety requirements, transport legislation establishes safety requirements for the land, air, and marine transport aspects of operations. Certain activities, such as adventure aviation and jet boating, are regulated under transport rules rather than the Adventure Activities Regulations.
The process includes preparing paperwork that details their safety management system and operating procedures, then working with a recognised safety auditor who checks that paperwork and follows it up with an onsite field-audit.
Once an operator passes this audit, the safety auditor will then provide a copy of the safety audit certificate to WorkSafe. The WorkSafe Registrar will then register the operator unless we decline to do so for reasons set out in the Adventure Activities Regulations.
Having passed an audit, it is the operator’s responsibility to continue to comply with this standard. They must ensure the approved safety management system is followed, and good practice is maintained. Additionally, they must review their safety management system in response to new information or as their business changes.
White Water Kayaking & Packrafting North Island grade 2 rivers
Rock Climbing & Bouldering New Zealand
Abseiling New Zealand
Coasteering (Boogie Boarding in & around sea caves) Bethells Beach region
Sea Kayaking North Island
Rafting Clutha River & Hawea River
We have a current AdventureMark Audit with annual surveillance and a complete renewal every three years. This is a national outdoor independent audit programme ensuring organisations are operating above the industry safety standard. We develop site and activity management plans for all our offerings. Our comprehensive health and safety policy covers all aspects of our internal and external operations.
Our approach to identifying and managing risks and hazards “so far as is reasonably practicable” and foreseeable is in Planning-Doing-Checking-Acting. As a safety audit certified operator, we meet rigorous standards in safe travel, qualified adventure activities and provide acknowledged event and water safety
In 2002 the Ministry of Education published a document clarifying schools’ responsibilities regarding EOTC and the expectation of schools to meet the emerging requirements. We recognise those guidelines reflected in our out-of-school needs checklist and when partnering with schools we have a comprehensive mutual agreement contract.
Fundamental Principles of Health and Safety at Work make up the over-arching tier of our managerial systems.
Expert staff are integral to health and safety by being AdventureSmart. We select only the best for the job. We look for people who have the right combination of skills, knowledge and experiences.
New instructors go through a rigorous training and induction programme and continue to be mentored.
Social Nature Movement uses modern, well maintained safety and emergency equipment.
We have routine inspections, pre-use checks and scheduled replacements and scheduled internal reviews of activities.
AdventureMark is New Zealand’s largest adventure certification body. They work with over 200 operators here in New Zealand and in several countries worldwide providing our health and safety audit and adventure certification services across the globe.
This helps markets work better by providing internationally recognised services that create economic benefit.
WorkSafe is New Zealand’s primary workplace health and safety regulator. Our audit is registered by WorkSafe New Zealand under the Adventure Activities Certification Scheme
Promoting excellence in outdoor instruction and guiding through qualifications for professionals since 1987. Our field workers maintain strict industry standards as members of the New Zealand Outdoor Instructors Association (NZOIA)
Advanced First Aid and Emergencies; our team are trained and fully qualified in first aid.
River Rescue and Water Safety trained through Rescue3 NZ.
Staff are approved to work with young people by the New Zealand Police Vetting services.
