Risk management | Crown Lands

Crown reserves are used for a wide range of public purposes such as environmental and heritage protection, recreation and sport, community halls and open space.

People have the right to access and enjoy our Crown reserves without being exposed to unnecessary risk.

Managing risk on Crown reserves is a key responsibility for Crown land managers. Effective risk management is crucial in protecting people, preserving the land and its natural, cultural and built assets, and providing security from financial, reputational, legal or administrative damages.

Risk areas

Risk areas for Crown land managers relate to the reserve purpose and its use. For example, the risks are different for a showground, a cemetery and a bushland reserve. Crown land managers must consider their own circumstances and identify the risk areas specific to their Crown reserve.

Typical risk areas for most Crown land managers include:

health and safety – this includes staff, contractors, volunteers and visitors
environment and land management
emergency management
financial management
asset management, including buildings and infrastructure
administration, including meeting legal requirements.

Code of conduct

The Crown reserve code of conduct (PDF, 640 KB) outlines the standards of behaviour the Department expects of Crown land managers. The code aligns with broader community expectations that Crown land managers will show transparency, integrity and good governance when undertaking reserve management activities. Adopting consistent standards and behaviours will help instil public trust and confidence in the integrity and professionalism of the Crown reserve system.

Having a risk management process in place is a significant part of showing you are following the code.

Risk management process

Effective risk management is a continual process. It involves systematically asking:

What could go wrong?
What would the impact or result be?
How likely is it to happen?
How can we prevent or minimise the impact or result?

For some high-risk activities, such as working in confined spaces, holding large-scale events and planned major works, Crown land managers must carry out a risk assessment under other legislation such as the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

We recommend completing a risk assessment where:

a new activity is being carried out on the reserve
there is uncertainty about the impact of the hazard
there are several hazards and you are unsure how they may interact
there are changes that may reduce the effectiveness of the control measures.

There are a minimum of 4 steps in any risk assessment:

Identify the risk.
Assess the risk.
Control the risk.
Review the controls.

These must be reviewed regularly to ensure ongoing effectiveness.

Controlling risk involves identifying and applying all reasonable, achievable solutions to eliminate or minimise a risk, within available resources.

When considering risk control options for health and safety hazards, you should apply one or more of the following strategies. These are listed in order of highest to lowest level of effectiveness and reliability :

Eliminate the risk
Substitute the hazard, in whole or in part, with a safer alternative
Reduce the risk through engineer controls
Reduce exposure to the risk through administering controls
Use personal protective equipment.

Throughout the risk management process, you should record your assessment and the actions you took. A completed risk assessment will inform everyday business decisions and help you communicate any issues with internal and external stakeholders.

We encourage Crown land managers to use the Risk assessment template (DOCX, 49 KB).

Hazards to consider when doing a risk assessment

The following table lists some common hazards that may apply to Crown reserves. These are examples only, not an exhaustive list.

Table 1. Common hazards on Crown reserves
Risk area	Example
Health and safety	Working at heights Food safety Confined spaces Dangerous substances – chemicals, fuels, asbestos Electrical First aid Slippery and/or uneven surfaces Access to water (river, creek, dam)
Events or venue hire	Security Waste Requirements specific to type of event or activity Noise Permits Service of alcohol Emergency procedures
Environment and land	Contaminated soil Pests Dangerous trees Weeds Chemical storage Biosecurity
Financial	Theft Tax Cash handling Fraud Insurance Tenure (leasing or licensing)
Assets – building and other	Road or pathway surfaces Exits Building safety Facilities such as toilets Electrical Historical buildings Lighting
People – staff, volunteers, contractors, visitors	Inexperienced or new staff Mental stress Unsupervised children Bullying and/or harassment
Equipment	Vehicles and traffic Vehicles and machinery (using and servicing) Moving parts
Emergency	Fire Evacuation plan Flood
Other	Complying with legislation Record-keeping

Online risk register

Non-council Crown land managers have access to an online risk register via the Reserve Manager Portal. Non-council Crown land managers can record potential and identified hazards and list control measures that have been put in place to manage the risk/s.

We encourage you to proactively assess risks and use the register.

The register also allows the Department to monitor identified risks and help Crown land managers when necessary.

Resources

Legislation