In an emergency
Ring 111. Ask for Fire, Ambulance or Police.
Assembly point: the front of the church, next to the RSA.
Go straight there. Don’t stop to collect anything, and don’t get into your car. Cars in the driveway hold up the fire trucks. Stay at the assembly point until someone tells you it’s safe to go back in. That goes for practice drills too.
If the alarm sounds during Mass, listen for the priest and leave by the nearest exit. Walk, don’t run. If someone near you needs a hand getting out, stay with them. Anyone who can’t move quickly is taken out last from a safe spot, so the exits stay clear while everyone else is leaving.
Report a hazard, near miss or injury
Tell us if you see something unsafe. You don’t need to be sure it’s serious.
Something unsafe, nobody hurt. A loose step. A wobbly kneeler. An extension cord across a doorway. A light out in the car park. Ring the parish office on 09 818 6325, or email ourladyoflourdes@xtra.co.nz. If you’d rather write it down, there’s a Hazard Notification form on our Policies & Forms page.
A near miss or an injury. Someone tripped, or got cut, or nearly did. Tell us the same day, even if it seemed minor and nobody was hurt. Fill in a Near Miss and Incident Investigation form and give it to the Parish Priest or the Finance Committee. Near misses are worth reporting because they show us what to fix before somebody actually gets hurt.
Serious harm. Ring 111 first. Leave everything where it is, unless you need to move something to stop someone else getting hurt. Tell the Parish Priest straight away. We have to notify the Diocese and WorkSafe.
Our commitment
Our Lady of Lourdes Parish wants everyone who comes here to be safe. That means parishioners, volunteers, staff, visitors and contractors.
We will:
- set safety goals and review them each year
- ask everyone to report injuries and incidents promptly
- look into every incident reported to us, and act on what we find
- find hazards and remove them where we can, and reduce them where we can’t
- tell people about the hazards in the areas where they work or serve
- involve parishioners and volunteers in safety decisions
- review our policies once a year
- meet our duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and its regulations
We ask everyone to play a part. Work safely, report hazards and injuries, look after your own safety, and take care that what you do doesn’t put anyone else at risk.
Download the signed policy: Parish Health & Safety Policy (PDF)
Who is responsible
The law calls the parish a PCBU, which stands for a person conducting a business or undertaking. It means the parish carries legal duties for the safety of everyone on our property.
The Parish Priest and the Parish Finance Committee are Volunteer Officers. They are responsible for making safety work here: adopting the policies, deciding who does what, and keeping it part of ordinary parish life.
If you volunteer here regularly, the law treats you as a volunteer worker. That covers sacristans, cleaners, gardeners, catechists, ministers of Communion and the hospitality teams, among others. You have the same right to a safe place as a paid employee, and the same duty to look after yourself and the people around you.
Everyone else who comes onto the property is owed a duty of care by the parish. In return we ask you to follow the signs and any reasonable instruction you’re given.
Contacts
Emergency 111
Parish office 09 818 6325 ourladyoflourdes@xtra.co.nz
WorkSafe New Zealand 0800 030 040
Poisons Centre 0800 764 766
More information
- Emergency Procedures — fire, earthquake, medical, wardens, equipment locations
- Events & Hall Users — planning a parish event, or running a meeting in the hall
- Visitors & Contractors — conditions of entry, signing in, contractor requirements
- Policies & Forms — our policies and the forms we use
The Diocese publishes the Catholic Diocese of Auckland Parish Health & Safety Guidelines, which this parish follows.