Scouting & Guiding
Open Water Swimming Risk Assessment Template
The complete guide to creating professional risk assessments for open water swimming activities.
Free to use Instant PDF download Updated February 2026
The essential guide to open water swimming safety
Open water swimming offers unique challenges and rewards beyond the pool environment. From lakes and rivers to coastal waters, participants develop confidence, fitness, and water safety awareness in natural settings.
This guide covers everything you need to create a thorough open water swimming risk assessment—from cold water shock and currents to entry/exit hazards and emergency procedures.
Scouting Activity
Scouting Activity
Activity Benefits
Why open water swimming matters
Confidence Building
Builds confidence in natural water environments and varied conditions.
Physical Fitness
Improves fitness, strength, and stamina through swimming in open water.
Safety Skills
Develops essential safety and survival skills including self-rescue techniques.
Environmental Respect
Encourages respect for natural environments and understanding of water conditions.
Risk Identification
Key hazards & control measures
DrowningHigh Risk
Potential Harm
Drowning, near-drowning, delayed rescue in open water environments.
Control Measures
- Assess swimming ability before activity
- Use tow floats for visibility
- Qualified lifeguard supervision
- Buddy system in operation
Cold Water ShockHigh Risk
Potential Harm
Cold water shock, hypothermia, gasping reflex, impaired swimming ability.
Control Measures
- Check water temperature before entry
- Brief on cold water response
- Gradual acclimatisation entry
- Limit swim duration in cold water
Currents & TidesHigh Risk
Potential Harm
Swept away by currents, riptides, undertows causing exhaustion or drowning.
Control Measures
- Research water conditions beforehand
- Check tide times and current patterns
- Brief swimmers on escape techniques
- Avoid swimming in strong currents
Entry/Exit HazardsMedium Risk
Potential Harm
Slips, trips, falls, cuts from rocks, sharp surfaces at water entry points.
Control Measures
- Inspect entry/exit points before use
- Wear appropriate footwear
- Brief swimmers on safe entry technique
- Mark hazardous areas
This guide covers the most common hazards. Our risk assessment wizard includes 20 hazards and 68+ control measures for Open Water Swimming, sourced from industry guidance — create your assessment in minutes.
Safety Checklist
Open water swimming safety checklist
Conditions
- Water temperature checked
- Currents/tides assessed
- Weather forecast checked
- Water quality verified
Equipment
- Tow floats available
- Rescue equipment ready
- Wetsuits if needed
- Warm clothing for after
Supervision
- Qualified supervisor present
- Swimming abilities assessed
- Buddy system in place
- Headcount procedures agreed
Emergency
- First aid kit available
- Emergency plan in place
- Communications working
- Nearest hospital known
Ready to create your open water swimming risk assessment?
Use our step-by-step wizard to generate a professional risk assessment in minutes.