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34 Winter 2022 HEALTH & SAFETY An engineering company has been fined after one of its employees fell through a roof while installing bird deterrent spikes. In May 2020, a man working for Craven and Nicholas (Engineering) Ltd on St John’s Road in Boston, stepped onto a fragile roof surface and fell six metres through it – suffering serious injuries to his head and left arm. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that this task was not part of the normal work for employees of the company and they had not properly risk assessed and planned the work at height. The lack of planning meant that reasonably practicable and recognised control measures that could have prevented the man falling from height, such as the use of purpose designed access equipment and over-boarding of fragile roof surfaces, had not been implemented. At Lincoln Magistrates Court, Craven and Nicholas (Engineering) Ltd of St Johns Road in Boston pleaded guilty to breaching Regulations 4(1)(a) and 4(1)(c) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. It was also fined £14,000 and also ordered to pay £6,541.80 in costs. ENGINEERING COMPANY ADMITS BREACH AFTER MAN FALLS FROM ROOF A man who was in control of a construction site in Scotland has been fined for not allowing two HSE inspectors access to the site to deal with unsafe work activity. In 2021 multiple concerns about unsafe work at a construction site in Irvine had been sent to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). In March 2021, two HSE inspectors attended the construction site and observed unsafe work at height taking place on a steel structure. The inspectors tried to gain entry to the site, but the gates were locked. They spoke to the person in control of the site, Baldev Singh Basra, but he refused to unlock the gates and let them in. Despite explaining the powers to enter a premise given to HSE inspectors as part of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, he still refused entry. After officers from Police Scotland attended and gained entry to the site, the HSE inspectors were able to take enforcement action to stop the unsafe work. Two workers were then found to be on the roof of the structure with no safe means of getting down. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service attended the site and rescued the workers from the structure. At Kilmarnock Sheriff Court, Baldev Singh Basra of Loach Avenue, Irvine pleaded guilty to an offence under Section 33(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 for contravening a requirement of an inspector – namely refusing entry to a premise where unsafe work was taking place. He was fined £1,500. FINED FOR REFUSING HSE INSPECTORS ENTRY TO CONSTRUCTION SITE