Child's death prompts £75,000 fine

Date:

11 November 2009

Release No:

NE/394/09

A housebuilder has been fined £75,000 after leaving scaffolding in place too long so a seven-year-old could plummet to his death.

Lovell Partnerships Ltd, of Market Place, London, was yesterday (Tuesday) fined a total of £75,000 and ordered to pay costs of £46,109 at Newcastle Crown Court. The company pleaded guilty to a single charge under Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 following an incident at Dryburgh, Washington, on 23 April 2006.

Lovell Partnerships Ltd was the principal contractor working on the site in Washington, refurbishing the domestic blocks of flats. The court heard that the scaffold was required for just half an hour but was left up for 12 days. It had the lower ladder removed to prevent access but it could still be jumped onto from balconies either side or by climbing up the first section of scaffold. Children managed to climb to the roof of the building three floors up and make a den, but a seven-year-old fell to his death as a result.

After the case, HSE Principal Inspector, Rob Hirst, said:

"Sadly, this tragic incident could so easily have been avoided. The scaffold was only required for a fraction of the time it was erected. It was taken down immediately after the incident but this death may have been prevented had it been removed promptly when it was no longer needed.

"As we know, construction sites have always been an attraction to children of all ages who can sometimes view them simply as exciting adventure playgrounds. In doing so they fail to recognise the dangers that they can put themselves in when playing on sites. All constructors must be aware and take action to prevent this unauthorised and highly dangerous access to building sites."

Note to editors

1. Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act etc 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety."
2. In 2006/07, 30 children aged 15 and under were seriously injured in the construction sector and one died. In 2007/08, 28 children were seriously injured.
3. Please visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safetytopics/scaffoldinginfo.htm for specific scaffolding advice to construction workers and employers.

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