A risk assessment for an adapted activity session should include which steps?

• A. Focus only on environmental hazards.
• B. Wait for incidents to occur before acting.
• C. Identify hazards, assess likelihood and severity, implement controls, assign responsibilities, document findings, and review after sessions.
• D. Conduct risk assessment only at the start of the year.

Answer: (C)

In an adapted activity session, risk assessment is a systematic process to identify what could cause harm, judge how likely it is and how severe the harm could be, and then put steps in place to minimize those risks. The best approach includes six parts: identifying hazards, assessing likelihood and severity, implementing controls, assigning responsibilities, documenting findings, and reviewing after sessions.

Identifying hazards means looking at all parts of the session—from equipment and environment to participant needs and communication methods—to spot anything that could cause harm. Assessing likelihood and severity helps you prioritize which risks to address first by considering how probable the harm is and how serious it would be if it occurred. Implementing controls puts concrete measures in place to reduce risk, such as modifying equipment, changing activities, improving supervision, or adjusting the space. Assigning responsibilities ensures someone is accountable for each control and action, so nothing falls through the cracks. Documenting findings creates a record you can reference, share with the team, and use for audits or future planning. Reviewing after sessions lets you learn from what happened, update controls, and continually improve safety for participants with varying needs.

Why other options don’t fit: focusing only on environmental hazards ignores other risk sources like equipment, participant health, or procedural risks. Waiting for incidents to occur is reactive and fails to prevent harm. Conducting the risk assessment only at the start of the year ignores changes that can happen with different activities, participants, or environments and misses opportunities to adapt safety measures. This comprehensive, ongoing process best supports safe, inclusive adapted activity sessions.