Swimming Pools on School Grounds

4 Water Quality Risk Management Plan

Under the Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2019 (Vic), swimming pools, spa pools or interactive water features on school grounds are classified as a category 1 aquatic facility requiring principals or their delegate to take the following actions to keep pool users safe:

• register the swimming pool, spa pool or interactive water features with the local council by 14 December 2020
• manage the risks to human health arising from pathogenic microorganisms in the water in the aquatic facility in accordance with the regulations and the Water Quality Guidelines
• ensure adequate training and competency of aquatic facility operators. Facility managers should ensure they have adequately trained staff who understand the treatment processes and know how to maintain water quality. The level of operator training should be proportionate to the risk of the facility. The minimum standard for aquatic facilities would be for staff to undertake a short course offered by an industry body or registered training organisation (recommendations for training are provided in the Health and Safety Training and Short Course Guide (DOCX)).
• have a water quality risk management plan that includes:
  • staff roles and responsibilities, competencies and training requirements
  • a description of the facility, its source water, and its treatment systems
  • water quality targets and treatment objectives
  • hazard identification, risk assessment and control measures
  • operational and verification monitoring
  • incident management and response procedures, and
  • data recording and reporting
• undertake a manual daily key pool water parameter check before the pool opens and operational checks every 4 hours, and to close the pool if the key pool water parameters are not met
• undertake periodic verification and monitoring of the microbiological quality of water at the aquatic facility and take action where the required parameters are not met. Refer to tables below.
• keep records of testing for 12 months from the date the record was made

For further information please refer to the following:

• Developing a water quality risk management plan for public aquatic facilities
• Department of Health and Human Services aquatic facilities webpage

Support

For support in registering your school aquatic facility and customising and implementing a school’s water quality risk management plan contact Marsh on:

• OHS Advisory Line: 1300 074 715
• Email: safety@education.vic.gov.au