Safety Guidelines at CSE Facilities

Overview: All persons entering CSE Premises, Facilities and Areas shall at all times adhere to the following rules and expectations relative to maintaining a high level of safety:

1. All persons entering the CSE sports facilities do so at their own risk and the University will accept no responsibility or liability arising out of use of the sports facilities provided or whilst within any facility as a guest, spectator, supervisor/parent/helper, visitor, or any other capacity. All persons attending any sports facilities in any capacity (e.g. as a user, guest, spectator, visitor, supervisor/parent/helper, official, etc.), must maintain awareness of their surroundings as the nature of many sports facilities may involve balls, objects, equipment, etc. being kicked, hit, blown or moved suddenly from multiple directions that may pose a potential or real hazard. All persons who enter the sports facilities therefore do so at their own risk and with full acceptance of these risks, and that the University will not accept any responsibility or liability for any incident that arises within the location.


2. All persons entering the CSE premises must conduct themselves with good decorum at all times, to manage any guests and/or closely supervise younger persons under their control, and to immediately obey the instructions of any CSE staff member. Failure to do so immediately may result in being asked to immediately leave the CSE premises, and being barred from further entry for a period of time.


3. There shall be no smoking, drinking of alcohol or use of drugs on the premises. No food or glass bottles/glasses may be brought anywhere close to a sporting facility/field/area.


4. Hirers and users will understand and comply with all relative statutory requirements for the activities that they are undertaking.


5. All Hirers and Users shall consider and manage the Health & Safety risks of your activities – especially those that involve or encourage collisions with other persons (rugby, soccer, lacrosse, handball, basketball, etc), or involve the use of hitting instruments (bats, rackets, sticks, woodball, golf etc) that may injury another person if swing close to other persons, or involve balls (especially those of a hard nature) or objects that may fly by being hit or thrown at high speed during games/events (hockey, lacrosse, softball, squash, tennis, baseball, football, cricket, javelin/discus/shotput/archery etc).


6. All players, and spectators/visitors etc, must maintain awareness during all times within the CSE sports facilities when approaching any areas of potential danger (collisions with players, collisions with hitting instruments, collisions with flying objects/balls). Sports facilities inherently have a higher risk of danger and all those entering such facilities must be aware that such dangers cannot be fully prevented or removed and accept their own personal risk and liability for entering these facilities.


7. Hirers and users shall at all times maintain the premises in a clean and tidy condition and shall not alter or damage any fixtures, fittings, equipment, or trees/plants etc.


8. Hirers and Users shall handle and dispose of any and all foodstuffs/recycle material in a hygienic and sensible way.


9. As needed Hirers and Users shall provide all participants in their activities with the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).


10. There shall be no climbing or working at height (defined as 1.8 metres above ground level) by any participant without the correct training and provision of PPE.


11. All persons shall at all times exercise caution on stairs, paths, corridors, changing rooms, especially during times of high humidity, rain, water droppage/spillage.


12. All persons entering the CSE facilities as Hirers, Users, Participants, Spectators, Visitors, Guardians etc shall at all times be mindful of their immediate area and the nature of activities and behaviours likely to be undertaken around them and also the potential danger/impact they have on others around them whilst on the premises.


13. If any person within the CSE considers a clear and present danger exists from any activity or facility, then they should immediately take steps to reduce the risks, remove themselves (and other persons) away from the danger area or activity, and as necessary immediately contact in person any of the CSE Ground Staff, CSE Administrative Staff, CSE Reception, or phone the reception 3910 3244.


14. THE CSE HIGHLY RECOMMENDS THAT FORMALLY QUALIFIED COACHES ARE PRESENT AT ALL TIMES TO SUPERVISE ALL FORMS OF TRAINING COMPETITION.

Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) are located at all major CSE facilities.

There are many AED sited around the large outdoor Stanley Ho Sports Complex – eg.

• Pitch 1 (wall of HKU Sandy Rugby Club)
• Pitch 2 (wall of Changing Rooms/Toilet block)
• Active Health Clinic (Henry Fok Health and Fitness complex)
• Henry Fok Swimming Pool (attendants office)
• Pitch 3 (wall under the stadium by the First Aid Room)
• Pitch 4 (on lighting box at top of stairs by the cricket marquee – by Tennis Cts 5&6)

Special Care during sporting activities – Protective equipment – Safe Practice:
The appropriate protective equipment should be worn at all times by participants to reduce the likelihood of injury during activities (eg. mouthguards, helmets, face-masks, protective padding, protective eye-wear etc). Coaches, players, officials, parents, staff etc should always be vigilant to prevent practice/games sessions that may cause injury by too much congestion (eg., too many players and/or stray balls flying through the air), or by poorly designed game/practice arrangements (eg., players too close together or too near spectators etc).

The capacity of each sports venue is recommended and posted at our website. Any chance that users will have numbers of players attending that are likely to exceed the maximum capacity, then this requires prior approval of the Facility Management Team.
Running Track:

• Running shoes with spikes projected more than 7mm are not allowed to be used on the track.
• Lane #1 and 2 may at times be closed to casual users for preventing wear and tear of inner lanes.
• No ball games are allowed to be conducted on the running track

Field Events:

• For athletic field events, javelin and discus throws cannot be carried out at the same time at Pitch 3. Only qualified athletic coaches/technical officials (HKAAA certified or equivalent) can make requests for borrowing throwing equipment.

Rugby/Football:

• the use of metal studs or metal cleats are not permitted on any artificial surface. - To avoid damage to the grass (or artificial) pitches, they will be closed in the event of adverse weather conditions, in particular when the pitches are flooded or the surface waterlogged, making them unfit for play. Mouthguards should be worn by all rugby players at all times during contact activities, and the CSE recommends a formally qualified coach attend and supervises all training sessions.

Cricket:

• bowling is only permitted from the Southern end (closest to Tennis Cts 1-4) - batters should not aim/attempt to hit the ball in the air but along the ground as much as possible so as to prevent cricket balls being hit over the boundary rope on the full. Any player hitting a ball over the boundary rope (“a six”) is immediately “out” and if any ball is hit over the boundary and especially over any fences or open areas outside the boundary rope (eg., into any tennis areas, the all-weather area, 400m track, or onto Sha Wan Drive), then the batter/team will be held fully responsible for any damages or compensation, and/or the team and the sport may be consequently banned for an extensive period of time.

Lacrosse and Hockey:

• players and spectators etc must be constantly vigilant as to where the ball is travelling and always mindful of “where the ball might land” during practices involving many players. Every effort must be made to ensure any errant ball will not hit any “unaware/uninvolved” persons behind the intended recipient or target by having teams practice in parallel lines and a good safe distant away from other users.

For hockey/Lacrosse activity carried out at Pitch 2, the following restrictions would apply:

1. The CSE would try to adjust the height of the portable net placed between P2B & 2C based upon weather conditions. During windy conditions, a lower net height will be used as a safety measure while higher net height would be arranged on non-windy days. The CSE hope to soon complete installation of more permanent safety nets on P2AB and P2C.
2. University and halls hockey/Lacrosse sports team or any groups and individual which use P2AB are not allowed to practice goal shooting towards P2C. This rule however would not apply when a full-pitch match is conducted under the supervision of a referee.
3. Any hall/internal groups and individual which use P2B for hockey/Lacrosse have to practice goal shooting towards the seashore. Our Facilities Attendants will set up the pitch by placing the goal posts with one facing the seashore and the other one facing the Sha Wan Drive instead of P2C.
4. Our Facilities Attendant will conduct check-ups to help make sure that hockey/lacrosse players do not practice goal hitting towards P2C.
5. Lacrosse activities should be desirably held on Pitch 1 to help limit the danger to other players/persons in the nearby vicinity.

Lacrosse player advice: Lacrosse is a high speed team sports with lots of body contact. Players are required to wear good forms of protective equipment, such as helmet, mouth guard, protective eyewear, gloves, and protection from both body contact and also stick-to- body contact. Coaches and players need to be sensitive about the environment and ensure an adequate buffer zone between groups and its zone is large enough to reduce body contact. All safety issues must be planned as much as possible and must be corrected before the players are permitted to begin practice. More importantly, we request all teams to review their training pattern and have good risk-reduction/safety plans always in place. It is suggested that coaches and captains learn appropriate risk management practices to reduce dangerous conditions within the training environment. Coaches and captains should provide constant warnings and cautions to team members regarding the inherent risk of the sports and remain vigilant at all times and take immediate action to reduce any likelihood of injuries.

Softball:
For softball activity carried out at Pitch 4, the following restrictions would apply:

• All pitching practice inside the diamond area has to be conducted on a mattress area provided at the pitcher position. The mattress will only be removed for competition with prior approval from the Facility Manager.
• Batting towards the partition-net installed at the entrance of P4 near tennis court #5 & 6 is strictly prohibited.
• Practice of batting is allowed by using the portable net provided at the pitch and a fence located in between All Weather Area and P4A.
• Do not remove the protective mattress at the pitching area in training. It can only be removed during tournaments with prior approval from FMT.

Examples of important softball areas on Pitch 4

1. The photo below shows a net which is hanging to partition the playing area of the pitch away from the common area at the top of the stairs leading up from the running track level. This net serves as a purpose to stop balls being thrown for “foul-hit” out of the playing field. This net is installed to help protect the safety of the users who walk up the stairs to either entering Pitch 4 or Tennis court 5/6. This net does NOT serve the purpose to allow players to practice hitting balls into the net – this is NOT PERMITTED.
   


2. There are several portable nets provided at Pitch 4 to assist the practice of batting (below). The nets are suggested to be located away from any crowds and placed near the slope facing Sha Wan Drive.
   


3. There is a net installed onto the fence located at Pitch 4A facing the All Weather Area (below). Players can practice their batting into the fence at THIS LOCATION ONLY – do NOT hit into any other fences.
   


4. Recently, the capacity of Pitch 4 has become a safety issue to the CSE. Please note that only 50 people are allowed to use either P4A or P4B at the same time (max of 100 on both pitches). Students/coaches who are in-charge of the booking of Pitch 4 have to make sure that the capacity is NOT exceeded. If CSE staff are alerted to “over-capacity”, the practice will have to be stopped until the capacity problem is solved. If repeated incidents are found, the booking privileges of the student group will be suspended.


5. Below is a true example of a DANGEROUS batting practice at Pitch 4 by HKU players – notice that NOT all batters are on the same side, plus the players are all TOO close to each their neighbour. If one batter hits the ball too early or too late, it may travel diagonally to hit their neighbouring player who is not watching the neighbour’s ball and could result in serious injury. DO NOT UNDERTAKE THESE TYPES OF PRACTICE.
   

Softball player Advice: The CSE would like to draw all players attention that several young HKU Students received problematic eyes injuries during softball practice at Stanley Ho Sports Centre over recent years. As an eye injury can lead to permanent damage the CSE would like to raise the safety concerns to all teams practices (U-Team and Hall Teams). The nature of softball requires coaches and players to be sensitive to ensure adequate safety. Injuries must be prevented in the coaching and training environment by taking appropriate steps and training programs, such as, avoiding multiple activities going on at the same time without assistant coach or senior players (or captains) at each location. Provide an adequate buffer zone between groups and its zone is large enough to make complete stop prior to any contact. All batting practice should be conduct in same direction with adequate gaps between players and at a safe distance to any other players or spectators etc.

All safety issues must be planned as much as possible and must be corrected before the players are permitted to begin practice. Appropriate devices such as face masks and protective spectacles/goggles are suggested to use when its necessary. More importantly, we request all teams to review their training pattern and check their equipment constantly. Although the HK Softball Association does not have written safety guidelines, and many coaches have little formal coaching education, it’s suggested that Coaches and Captains learn appropriate risk management practices to reduce dangerous conditions within the training environment.

Providing constant warnings and cautions to team members regarding the inherent risk of the sports is to be strongly reminded.

THE CSE HIGHLY RECOMMENDS THAT A FORMALLY QUALIFIED SOFTBALL COACH IS PRESENT AND SUPERVISES ALL FORMS OF SOFTBALL TRAINING AND COMPETITION

If any player feels there is a clear and likely danger due to over-congestion, poor practice techniques during batting or throwing etc, then the players and coaches MUST take immediate action to stop the activity and to immediately report potential safety concerns to the CSE ground staff.

The CSE ground staff cannot supervise all the various CSE playing areas at all times, they are not “sports police”, thus all players and coaches must take proactive steps during their own practices/games to help prevent future sports injuries.

The CSE hopes that all players, hall and U-team members/coaches take this note seriously and raise this safety issue to all concerned softball members and groups within HKU. We hope that all softball activities are conducted in a proper and safe environment to avoid injuries whenever the players are practicing alone (not recommended), or preferably always under a coach’s supervision.

In case of fire: Follow fire evacuation plans established by the Estates Office.

CSE reserves the right to update or modify the above terms and conditions at any time without prior notice.