Safety and compliance
Schools have legislative obligations to use and handle chemicals safely.
Chemical safety in schools
Information on safe handling of chemicals in schools is provided for teachers and students.
Risk assessment
Specific advice on risk assessments can be found in CSIS 1.7 Risk Assessment – a pre-requisite for risk control.
As a classroom activity, you may wish to undertake a risk assessment process with students. This type of activity is linked to the following Working Scientifically outcomes:
- Stage 5 Science (WS5.3D) - Students choose equipment or resources for an investigation by assessing risks and addressing ethical issues associated with these methods
- All science courses - Planning investigations (11/12-2), students assess risks, consider ethical issues and select appropriate materials and technologies when designing and planning an investigation
Carrying out a risk assessment: a resource document for students and teachers (DOCX 46 KB) contains a blank scaffold of a risk assessment to use with students.
Using animals in science
Specific advice for using animals in stage 4-5 science (DOCX 84 KB) in combination with the Animals in Schools website.