AQA · A-Level · Physical Education
Course version: 7582 · Version from Sept 2016
Sport and the law: Coaches (duty of care).
A coach owes a duty of care to performers, meaning they must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm.
Checked against the AQA 7582 specification (opens in a new tab) on .
- Point 4 of 5
- 4 key terms
Study notes
From the checked teaching notes for this specification point.
The idea
A coach owes a duty of care to performers, meaning they must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm. This includes safe session planning, checking equipment and facilities, matching activities to ability, giving correct technical instruction, and supervising properly. Breach occurs when the coach's conduct falls below the standard of a reasonably competent coach in that sport. Damage must result, such as injury from an unsafe drill or from training a performer beyond their capacity. Causation links the breach to the harm. Defences include contributory negligence by the performer or volenti where the performer knowingly accepted an obvious risk. MCQ tasks test whether you can spot the duty, the breach, the damage and any defence in a scenario.
What earns the marks
- Duty of care: coaches must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm to performers.
- Scope of duty: safe planning, equipment checks, ability matching, correct instruction and supervision.
- Breach: conduct falls below the standard of a reasonably competent coach in that sport.
- Damage: the performer suffers harm, such as injury from an unsafe drill or excessive load.
- Causation: the coach's breach must be the factual and legal cause of the harm.
- Defences: contributory negligence or volenti may reduce or defeat a claim.
Common mistakes and how to put them right
Misunderstanding: a coach is liable for every injury that happens in a session.
Put it right: Liability requires a breach of duty that causes foreseeable harm, not merely the occurrence of an injury.
Misunderstanding: duty of care only applies during competition.
Put it right: It applies in training, warm-ups, travel and any coach-supervised activity.
Misunderstanding: a signed consent form removes all liability.
Put it right: Consent may support volenti for obvious risks, but it does not excuse a coach's negligent act.
Misunderstanding: breach is judged by the coach's own intentions.
Put it right: Breach is judged objectively against a reasonably competent coach in that sport.
Exam tips
- Identify the specific duty in the scenario, such as equipment checks or ability matching.
- Distinguish between an inherent risk of the sport and a risk created by the coach's failure.
- Check whether the performer's own conduct contributed to the harm.
Try the lesson
The start of the Sport and the law: Coaches (duty of care). lesson, made from checked teaching notes for this specification point.
Have a go first
Which of the following best describes a coach's legal duty of care towards their athletes?
Listen
A coach owes a duty of care to performers, meaning they must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm. This includes safe session planning, checking equipment and facilities, matching activities to ability, giving correct technical instruction, and supervising properly. Breach occurs when the coach's conduct falls below the standard of a reasonably competent coach in that sport. Damage must result, such as injury from an unsafe drill or from training a performer beyond their capacity. Causation links the breach to the harm. Defences include contributory negligence by the performer or volenti where the performer knowingly accepted an obvious risk. MCQ tasks test whether you can spot the duty, the breach, the damage and any defence in a scenario. A strong answer earns marks for these points. Duty of care: coaches must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm to performers. Scope of duty: safe planning, equipment checks, ability matching, correct instruction and supervision. Breach: conduct falls below the standard of a reasonably competent coach in that sport. Damage: the performer suffers harm, such as injury from an unsafe drill or excessive load. A common slip: Misunderstanding: a coach is liable for every injury that happens in a session. Instead, liability requires a breach of duty that causes foreseeable harm, not merely the occurrence of an injury. Exam tip: Identify the specific duty in the scenario, such as equipment checks or ability matching.
Key words
Say what each word means before you turn the card.
Duty of care
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Standard of a competent coach
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Foreseeable harm
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Defences in negligence
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See every definition
- Duty of care
- Coaches must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable harm to performers.
- Standard of a competent coach
- Breach occurs when conduct falls below the standard of a reasonably competent coach in that sport.
- Foreseeable harm
- Harm that reasonable steps should be taken to avoid, covering safe planning, equipment checks, ability matching, correct instruction and supervision.
- Defences in negligence
- Contributory negligence by the performer or volenti where the performer knowingly accepted an obvious risk may reduce or defeat a claim.
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