Updated 27 January 2025
Dear CTT Open Event organiser,
(Note all links need updating with the new website addresses, as not all pages have yet been copied over to the new website please bear with me while I do the necessary updates)
This is a bulk message sent to all organisers 8 weeks prior their event to allow organisers to meet their responsibilities defined in GN 10 Duties of Promoting Secretaries - January 2022 and the District Guidance on Organising An Event. This may feel overly bureaucratic but it is necessary to ensure that our sport complies with its own regulations and to support our insurance cover.
Actions required:
1. Please download your course Risk Assessment from the CTT Website (https://www.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/find-a-course - link currently not working try https://legacy.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/find-a-course) or the District list (https://www.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/district-courses/ lin not working try https://legacy.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/district/courses?include_deactivated=0) and review it. Please send me your updated Risk Assessment (if you feel it needs amendment). (Note: The RAs are minimum standard, you may increase mitigations but that does not mean they will be added to the RA without review.)
Following the CTT Board Note on 20mph restrictions please pay particular attention in your assessment to any 20mph speed restrictions as CTT have said courses with 20mph zones may only be used when a District has approved an exceptions on a case by case base. Information needed for 20mph exceptions is:
a. Length of restriction.
b. Existence of pavements (means less likely that pedestrians will step into the road).
c. General width of road affected.
d. Is restriction in place due to a school which would not be in use during your event.
e. Gradient which might mean that riders would struggle to exceed 20 mph.
f. Population of area (is often given in Wikipedia for villages/hamlets).
g. Are there any shops, pubs, amenities which might mean there is pedestrian traffic.
h. Traffic count (some of our courses are less than 30 units per hour so the likelihood of cars holding riders and riders being tempted into dangerous riding is low)
i. Pedestrian count in 20mph zone.
j. Any other factors which you think reduce the risk of an incident on your course - how long as the 20mph been in place for example.
2. Submit your Police Notification Form(s) for your forthcoming CTT Open Event to your police authority(s) and copy it to me.
3. Conduct a pre-event traffic count on the same day of the week at the same time of the event to confirm there are no problems with the count. Please note that CTT are asking that RAs in future contain traffic count numbers. Traffic counts should be taken at the part of the course assessed as being the most heavily traffic. Traffic counts should be sent to Paul Winchcombe so he can update course details.
4. Prepare your start sheet and your cover sheet.
5. Please ensure that you are using the latest version of the various CTT Forms which are held on the CTT website.
For the start sheet please include the following form of words to highlight the need to riders for safe riding.
"CTT guidance reminds us that riders should not exceed speed restrictions. This is part of riding and racing safely. Riders in West District should not exceed speed restrictions and should not over take other road users unless it is safe to do so. An example would be overtaking a slow moving vehicle such as a tractor, where the road is wide enough."
In addition the start sheet must state:
"For and on behalf of Cycling Time Trials under its Rules & Regulations".
Start Sheet Guidance can be found here.
6. After your event please send me confirmation that there were no new On the Day risks and that there were no incidents which would require the Risk Assessement to be updated. And please send my your on the day traffic count. west-district-risk-assessment-secretary@googlegroups.com.
Organiser Message:
I am the Risk Assessment Secretary for West District (the West District of Cycling Time Trials). I’m making contact with you because you are listed as the organiser of a forthcoming CTT Open event.
Part of my role is to assist and ensure that event organisers like you can provide up to date Risk Assessments and also have put the necessary PNF (Police Notification Forms) in place for their events.
At West District we need to make sure RA’s are kept up to date and consistent and also that PNF’s are being completed and sent to the correct Police Authorities. Note some courses cover 2 or more police authorities, in that case all police authorities must be notified. Please could you send me a copy of your PNF(s) for our records.
If you don’t have an existing RA for your forthcoming event let me know asap because it should be on the CTT West Website. (Link not working please contact Paul Winchcombe if you don't have one or try https://legacy.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/district/courses?include_deactivated=0
If you have a copy of the RA, and have carried out a risk assessment for your event (you should have!) , please amend the date to the date you carried your risk assessment and email it to me (making any other changes you feel are necessary to the existing RA). I keep an electronic ‘file’ of all the RA’s in the West District and update the CTT website. Please read the guidance on the RA pages.
If you require a new course for your event then please follow the Course Design Process. Note that approving a course may take several weeks as it must go to the West District Committee members for approval.
If you need any assistance with RA’s, PNF’s traffic counts etc etc; then please get in touch. Either I or one of my fellow West DC member should be able to help. We are here to help organisers like you and also to assist new folk to step forward and run more events in the future.
Don't forget to confirm you time keepers and HQ are still available. I am assuming that you have already booked them.
I’ve included a couple links to Guidance Notes for some light bedtime reading: -
GN10 - the duties of promoting secretaries and
GN22 - formal risk assessments (February 2024)
From GN22 I’ve copied the following - "• It is vital that the approved risk assessment documentation is maintained up-to-date.” - This is of course true for you as organiser, as well as your riders and Cycling Time Trials. It is a requirement of our insurance that events are held on courses which have up-to-date risk assessments and that those RAs are complied with on the day.
Please shout if you have any queries and good luck with your event!
Yours in cycling,
Paul Winchcombe
P.S. If you feel this note should contain any other guidance then please let me know.