I keep reading that H&S is the reason the club refuse to allow volunteers to help out with tasks around the stadium. However, as you say, that's easily bypassed by having risk assessments in place and properly briefing volunteers on what's required. I personally have never heard H&S used as a reason by anyone in a position of responsibility at the club but then nobody's going to believe that now are they?
Scenario for you. Club asks for volunteers to, I don't know, tidy away some feral hoses for example. People turn up, they get a full briefing during which all the relevant risk assessments are read out and they sign off as having understood all requirements - good to go.
One of the volunteers thinks it would be clever rather than to carry one of the hoses from its existing location to a brand new shed, supplied by donation from B&Q, as required by the risk assessment, using proper lifting and transportation techniques of course, to throw a hose down a flight of derelict stairs to save time and effort. Unbeknown to the volunteer A.N. Other volunteer had carried their hose down to the shed and was re-ascending the derelict stairwell, in a manner of course fully in compliance with all risk assessments.
As circumstance would have it the throw hose lands atop the unfortunate stair climber knocking them from their balanced position and causing them to fall down several of the stairs, in the process fracturing their leg in multiple locations and giving them a right minter into the bargain. The poor victim has to attend A&E where an orthopaedic surgeon announces that surgery is required which will involve a one week hospital stay followed by at least six weeks, probably longer, rehabilitation and physio during which time work is out of the question.
Now imagine the accident victim suddenly realising they're about to lose their job and thinking 'ach that's OK the club will be insured and will look after me, after all I was doing them a favour'. Now think about it, if the club approaches their insurance company will the company pay out any claim by the accident victim? A non employee, non contractor carrying out work on behalf of the insured party by informal arrangement. If the insurance company did pay out what would it do to the next five or six years' premium? Would the club be obliged to pay the victim some kind of compensation without approaching the insurance company? Might take the accident victim two years to find a new job, might incur the club £100,000 in lost wage costs. Or maybe the accident victim would need to pursue compensation from the individual that lobbed he hose? Turns out that person is a poor pensioner (
) with no resources available to compensate the accident victim.
If it was your business would you take the risk with people you don't know?