Tower Tours

Whilst it may not be common practice, there may be churches who let members of the public climb the tower, or visit other high-level parts of their premises.

If you choose to do this make sure you consider the following

• Carry out a risk assessment to decide the maximum number of people on a tower tour at any time.  To do this you might want to take into account the size of the tower, number of staff and means of safe evacuation.

Think: Will this change in different weather conditions?  A general guide is that the maximum number in the tower tour at any one time should not be more than 15, including staff and volunteers.  You may need to set the figure differently according to your circumstances.

• Do not start a new tour until you are sure the previous visitors have come back down.
  
• Decide on a policy for children on tower tours, e.g. no children under 8 to be allowed on a tour, and all children under 16 to be accompanied by an adult.
  
• How many stewards do you need to escort the party?  We recommend at least 2 (one at the front and one behind) who should be able bodied, over 18, and provided with a means of communication to call for help in case of an emergency.
  
• You should prohibit - The carriage of large items of baggage these should be left at ground level so as to leave both hands free.
  
• Make sure you provide, adequate lighting; handrails with gaps of no more than 150mm; notices explaining the difficulty of the climb, whether it is suitable for those who are elderly, infirm, pregnant, disabled, or suffer from medical conditions which could be affected by the climb and warnings regarding restricted headroom.