K Pendlebury & Sons Ltd has pleaded guilty at Trafford Magistrates’ Court to a breach of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 after it failed to ensure workers were prevented from standing on fragile parts of the roof. The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) investigations found the site fell below the minimum legal standards for safety.
 
An employee was working on a project to replace the raised roof on the sports hall at Loreto High School in Chorlton with a flat roof when the accident happened. The Court heard that workers had removed old steel beams under part of the roof so that new beams could be installed. However, this meant the corrugated tin panels on part of the structure were left unsupported. The employee was walking over the roof when the panels under his feet gave way and he fell ten metres, hitting a section of scaffolding on his way down to the ground. The Court heard that there was no barrier around the fragile section of the roof, and the scaffolding had only been erected under parts of the roof rather than covering the full width.
 
The employee suffered a fractured pelvis, broken fingers and his right arm and elbow were smashed to pieces. He had to have an artificial elbow fitted and has been unable to return to work due to the extent of his injuries. K Pendlebury & Sons Ltd, of Ormskirk Road in Pemberton, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £3,539 towards the cost of the prosecution.
 
The HSE say that falls from height are the biggest cause of workplace deaths in the construction industry, with falls from fragile surfaces accounting for a fifth of the fatalities. For further information please click on the following link:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2013/rnn-nw-pendlebury.htm