E068:06 19 June 2006

Child safety reminder

As the summer holidays approach the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) offers its support to Child Safety Week by reminding the construction industry and parents to be alert to the dangers faced by children playing on or near building sites.

“Long summer evenings are a time for fun and adventure, unfortunately, all too often it can also be a time of tragedy", said Stephen Williams, Chief Inspector of Construction. "Understandably some children are drawn to construction sites as exciting places to play, but they are not playgrounds and playing on them can have fatal consequences. Industry and parents need to work together to ensure children’s safety.”

Between 2001/02 and 2004/05, 3 children died and 235 were injured during construction works, in most cases simple precautions would have prevented the incidents ever happening.

A child swinging on a rope, hanging from a tree, on a construction site fell from the rope and landed on a metal bar sticking up from concrete. Workers on the site had noticed the rope; realised local children had used it as a swing for much of the summer, but had done nothing about it.

The following practical advice for parents and workers will help keep children safe this summer:

• warn children against playing in dangerous areas, including building sites;
• make sure you know where your children are going, and when they will be back;
• encourage them to play only in safe areas such as playgrounds;
• workers should watch out for children playing around sites, if you see children, stop work and make sure they are off site before you begin again;
• lay heavy objects on the ground or fix them firmly upright so they cannot fall onto children and injure them;
• secure sites adequately when finishing work for the day;
• never allow children to ride in construction plant machinery.

Notes to Editors

1.Preventing accidents to children is the focus of Child Safety Week (19 -25 June), organised by the Child Accident Prevention Trust, a national charity devoted to preventing accidental injuries to children. HSE supports the Trust's aims. For further information, phone 0207 608 7361 or visit: www.capt.org.uk/csweek/default.htm

2. Further advice on keeping children safe from work activity is available on www.hse.gov.uk/

3. The examples below demonstrate just how easy it is for children to be killed/injured during construction projects:-

• A two-year old child fell 30ft from scaffold placed around social housing. He received life threatening head injuries. The scaffold had been erected to replace windows and carryout other refurbishment work on a block of flats in north London.
• A nine year-old boy was killed and another injured when they were crushed by a heavy steel water pipe being rolled by a group of children. Pipes were being stored in an area open to the public, whilst awaiting installation. They were not fenced off and had not been adequately secured to stop them being rolled.

Press enquiries

Denise Lewisohn 020 7717 6918
Out of hours 020 7928 8382

Public enquiries

HSE's InfoLine 0845 3450055
Caerphilly Business Park, Caerphilly CF83 3GG

HSE information and news releases can be accessed on the Internet www.hse.gov.uk