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UK News - Breaking news in the field of health and safety
Property developer and builder fined over child death
The property developer and builder, earlier convicted of breaching health and safety legislation in the circumstances of the death of a two-year-old boy on a Leicester building site, have been fined at Northampton Crown Court.
The boy died in July 2003, playing with friends on a patch of grass near Ranworth Walk, Leicester, when several 300kg concrete retaining wall slabs, intended for use as wall units, on which he was playing fell on top of him.
The developer from Peebles Way, Leicester, admitted
breaching r.8(5)¹ and r.12² of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996; and
ignoring a prohibition notice served by HSE 3 days after the tragedy, requiring that no construction work should take place at the site without competent supervision.
The developer was fined: £10,000 for breaching r.8(5) of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996, £7,500 for breaching r.12 of the same Regulations, and £7,500 for ignoring the prohibition notice. He was ordered to pay £3,000 costs.
The builder from Awsworth, Nottinghamshire, was found guilty of breaching r.8(5) of the above Regulations, for which he was fined £4,000. The charge of breaching r.12 of the same Regulations was left to lie on file, with no costs awarded against him.
Comment
"This tragedy is a sobering reminder that construction sites are dangerous places for children, extra care needs to be taken to ensure that sites are secure and that materials and plant are stored safely.
It should have been obvious that children would be tempted to play on the large concrete units left outside a construction site next to homes and a large public play area. Clearly the convicted parties failed in their duty to make the site as safe as possible, but parents and children should also remember that building sites aren't playgrounds.
Everyone involved in construction projects including property developers must take proper precautions to protect the public, particularly children, when carrying out their work and storing materials". - HSE investigating inspector.
The boy was one of over 530 children killed or injured on construction sites in the last 5 years in Great Britain.
¹ Regulation 8 (paragraph 5) of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 states that: 'materials and equipments shall be stored in such a way as to prevent danger to any person arising from the collapse, overturning or unintentional movement of such materials or equipment.'
² Regulation 12 of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 states that 'all practicable steps shall be taken where necessary to prevent danger to any person, to ensure that any new or existing excavations or any part of such excavation which may be in a temporary state of weakness or instability due to the carrying out of construction work does not collapse accidentally.'
