The following Safety Audit Standard (“Standard”) has been developed and published by WorkSafe New Zealand (“WorkSafe”) pursuant to Regulation 19 of the Health and Safety at Work (Adventure Activities) Regulations 2016 (“Regulations”):

Safety Management System Requirements for Adventure Activity Operators Version 2.0 (WorkSafe New Zealand, August 2023)

The updated Standard (version 2.0) incorporates changes to the Regulations, as amended by the Health and Safety at Work (Adventure Activities) Amendment Regulations 2023 and will come into effect on 1 April 2024. It replaces the previous Standard — Safety Audit Standard for Adventure Activities – Requirements for Operators Version 1.1 (WorkSafe New Zealand, February 2017).

Copies of the Standard may be obtained from WorkSafe’s website. Go to: https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/topic-and-industry/adventure-activities/documents-and-resources/.

The Standard sets out the requirements of a safety management system for all operators that provide adventure activities as defined by the Regulations.

The updated Standard includes changes to introduce: a specific requirement for operators to assess and manage risks associated with natural hazards; and more detailed information about the duty to communicate risks to participants and how this should occur. The updates also include consequential changes to ensure that the Standard is consistent with the upcoming amendments to the Regulations, when they come into force.

The core requirement of the Regulations is that all adventure activity operators must pass a safety audit and register their operation with WorkSafe. These audit requirements provide a proactive check that operators are meeting their obligations and have effective safety management systems in place.

To pass the safety audit, an operator must satisfy the safety auditor that their safety management system is consistent with the Safety Audit Standard.

Between 31 August 2023 and 1 April 2024, any audits carried out by safety auditors will continue to be assessed against the previous Standard (version 1.1). From 1 April 2024, any audits carried out by safety auditors will be assessed against the updated Standard (version 2.0).

The changes in the updated Standard were consulted on with the adventure tourism and outdoor commercial sectors with feedback received from industry bodies, safety auditors, operators, and interested individuals.

Dated at Wellington this 31st day of August 2023.

PAUL MOLLOY, Manager Technical Programmes and Support, WorkSafe New Zealand.