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Unsafe practices on construction sites are to be targeted as part of a national initiative aimed at reducing death, injury and ill health.

During a month-long drive to improve standards in one of Britain's most dangerous industries, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will visit sites where refurbishment or repair works are taking place.

Between 18 February and 15 March, inspectors will make unannounced visits to construction sites to ensure they are managing high-risk activity, such as working at height.

They will also check for general good order, assess welfare facilities and check whether suitable PPE such as head protection, is being used appropriately.

During 2011/12, 49 workers were killed while working in construction and 2,884 major injuries were reported. The purpose of the initiative is to remind those working in the industry that poor standards are unacceptable and could result in enforcement action.

Philip White, HSE Chief Inspector of Construction, said:

"Death and injury continue to result from avoidable incidents and it is largely those engaged in refurbishment and repair work who are failing to step up to the mark. Poor management of risks and a lack of awareness of responsibilities is unacceptable.

"In many cases simple changes to working practices can make all the difference, and can even save lives. Therefore if we find evidence that workers are being unnecessarily put at risk we will take strong action.

"We are determined to drive the message home that site safety and worker welfare cannot be compromised."

Further information about safe-working in construction can be found online at:

www.hse.gov.uk/construction

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A Trafford firm has appeared in court after workers were spotted taking down scaffolding without safety measures to prevent them being injured in a fall.

They were witnessed working on the outside of a row of terraced shops on Ripponden Road in Oldham on 4 September 2012 by a passing inspector from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Trafford Magistrates' Court heard Stretford Scaffolding Ltd had been hired to dismantle the scaffolding after it had been used by another company for a roofing project.

Neither of the two men standing on the scaffolding platforms were wearing harnesses, despite working up to six metres above the ground, and one of them was not a trained scaffolder. He should therefore not have been allowed to work on a partially dismantled section.

The court was told there were also no guard rails on part of the scaffolding to prevent workers falling. The HSE inspector issued an immediate Prohibition Notice, ordering the men to come down from the scaffolding until they were given suitable safety equipment by their employer.

Stretford Scaffolding Ltd, of Ciss Lane in Urmston, received a 12-month conditional discharge and was ordered to pay costs of £1,849 after admitting a breach of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Sandra Tomlinson said:

"We are regularly called out to incidents where people have been seriously injured or even killed as a result of a fall from height. That's why it's vital scaffolding firms make sure safety is their top priority.

"Stretford Scaffolding should never have allowed the scaffolding to be taken down without making sure workers could do the job safely. The most sensible way of achieving this would have been to use guard rails and harnesses.

"The firm also put the life of one of the men at risk by allowing him to work on a partially dismantled section, despite the fact that he wasn't a trained scaffolder.

"This case should act as a warning to other scaffolding firms that they risk being prosecuted if they put lives at risk."

Advice on how to prevent workplace falls is available at www.hse.gov.uk/falls.

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Driver CPC Training ...

Posted: 17/02/2012

It was reported by Commercial Motor yesterday that the United Road Transport Union (URTU) were raided by the Greater Manchester Police, where seven men were arrested and released on bail for fraud offences relating to Driver CPC.

This incident comes after the removal of their Driver CPC training approval by JAUPT back in December 2011 following a course that was held by URTU on September 4th 2011, for which there were 31 candidates present. Each driver paid £20 for the course, which included lunch.

Following the completion of the course two formal complaints were made to the DSA, noting that although the training was logged at 7 hours, the course began at 9am and ended at 2:15pm, with two 40 minute breaks inbetween. There were also some concerns regarding the quality of the training that the candidates had received. At the time this latest news went to press URTU were unavailable for comment.

The United Road Transport Union (URTU) became the first organisation in the UK to have their Driver CPC training approval removed by JAUPT and this news is a stark reminder why every Driver CPC training provider must adhere to regulations.

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A 23-year-old Keighley man died from massive crush injuries when his head became trapped in the jaws of a grab machine being wrongly used to move a pallet of cement bags.

Steven Allen was part of a team working for Skipton-based construction company JN Bentley Ltd on a building project for Bradford Council in Manningham in March 2007. Moving the 30 or so cement bags was to be the last job before the weekend when the incident happened.

Bradford Crown Court heard this week (25-27 January) that workers used a block grab attached to an excavator to move the load. As they did, the bags fell two metres to the ground, but the pallet remained in the jaws of the block grab. The pallet pivoted and Steven Allen took hold of it to pull it free. As the pallet came away, the jaws dropped and clamped on Steven's head, causing severe injuries. He died the following day.

After an investigation, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) mounted the prosecution against Mr Allen's employers. The court was told the HSE's findings revealed that the grab was being used against manufacturer's instructions and was not suitable for the job. Block grabs are designed to lift and move rectangular loads strapped together such as packs of bricks. The company had also failed to implement a safe system for lifting and transporting the bags of cement.

J N Bentley Ltd of Keighley Road, Skipton, North Yorkshire, had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. They were fined £106,250 and ordered to pay costs of £90,000.

HSE Principal Inspector, Dave Redman, said:

"The firm made a fundamental error by using a block grab to lift and move pallets and this resulted in the tragic death of a young man. This use was very clearly advised against by the manufacturers and the risks should have been understood by the company.
A block grab mechanism that was involved. It was attached to an excavator and wrongly used to move a pallet of cement bags.

A block grab mechanism that was involved. It was attached to an excavator and wrongly used to move a pallet of cement bags.

"Nevertheless, they allowed machinery to be used on their site which was totally unsuitable for the task. No assessment was made regarding the use of the grab and no instructions were given to the men who were operating it. Planning to make sure that work is carried out safely is not a formality or a tick-box exercise but is crucial to identifying and controlling risks.

"It shouldn't take a death to remind employers that failure to properly plan the work can have tragic consequences. An alternative way of lifting the pallet should have been used. Pallets are designed to be lifted using fork attachments which could have been fitted to the excavator. This would have prevented the incident which led to Steven Allen's death. If employers take their eye off the ball, it's all too easy for otherwise safe and routine tasks to turn into unacceptable risks."

Steven's mother Judith Allen said after the hearing:

"Whatever happens in court I know how unsafe working conditions led directly to my son's death, and the ripple effect it has had on the lives of my family and the lives of his friends.

"The effects of Steven's death continue to affect us all severely. Whatever fines are imposed it does not alter the fact that I have had my son taken from me, before he had chance to grow into the fine young man I know he would have become. This may be the end as far as prosecutions go, but our lives are blighted forever. The only consolation will be if it stops something like this happening again, and makes workers and the public far more aware than I was before Steven died, of the risks employers take with workers' lives in trying to save money."

To view this news story on the HSE website click here

Notes to editors

The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to prevent death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training, new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk

Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees."
HSE news releases are available at www.hse.gov.uk/press.

HSE Press releases can be view at

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/

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A recycling company in Rotherham displayed "a blatant disregard" for the safety of 120 workers by failing to protect them properly against dangerous parts of cutting and crushing equipment.
Parts of the Universal Recycling site in Mexborough, near Rotherham, taken during the HSE investigation last year

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) uncovered a catalogue of safety breaches during an inspection of the Universal Recycling Company site in Wharf Road, Kilnhust, Mexborough, in May 2010. The HSE found failings both in the yard and in the machine shop and had to return for a second day to complete the investigation.

There were so many apparent failings at the facility that inspectors took immediate enforcement action, issuing three Prohibition Notices to halt further work in some areas. Two Improvement Notices were later served giving the firm time to take effective remedial action.
The investigation exposed several examples where there were no or inadequate safeguards in place to prevent access to dangerous or moving parts of machinery, including chopping machines, shredding and crushing machinery, conveyors, pulleys, chain drives and belts and rollers.


Rotherham Magistrates' Court heard that London Wiper Company Ltd of Kettering, Northants, trading as Universal Recycling Company, failed to comply with the two Improvement Notices by August 2010, despite being granted an extension.

The HSE, which brought the prosecution, told the court that when the site was visited again, there were still several instances of inadequate guarding against access to dangerous machine parts. There were also trapping points from exposed drive belts and pulleys. Some guards put in place were ineffective and one was held in place by a rope.

Inspector Denise Fotheringham said after the hearing:
"Universal Recycling Company has shown a blatant disregard for the law and for the safety of their workers. The company was given every opportunity to comply with the requirements of the Improvement Notices and they did not do so. They were provided with detailed verbal advice, a letter and photographs highlighting areas requiring improvement, given an extension of time and further advice.

"Enforcement notices are issued for a reason and HSE will not tolerate non-compliance - we will prosecute. Failure to guard machines to acceptable standards results in disabling and even fatal incidents every year."


The London Wiper Company pleaded guilty to two offences of charges of non-compliance with an Improvement Notice and was fined a total of £8,000 and ordered to pay £5,000 costs.


The combined fatal and major injury rate in waste and recycling is more than four times the average across all industries. Three people were killed and a total of 530 major injuries to employees in waste and recycling were reported in 2009/10. A further 2,100 plus injuries were reported keeping workers off for more than three days.

To View this press release via the HSE Website Click Here

Notes to editors
1. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to prevent death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training, new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk
2. Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It is an offence for a person to contravene any requirement or prohibition imposed by an improvement notice or a prohibition notice."

http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/

Please see the HSE Website for information and Statistics

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