Health & Safety

School trust fined after member of public hit by falling tree branch

A school academy trust has been fined and a man given a suspended prison sentence after a member of the public was hit by a falling tree branch. Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust and gardening services provider Nicolas Thépot (trading as ‘The Green Yem’) both pleaded guilty to health and safety breaches following the incident, which left a 68 year-old with serious injuries.…

School trust fined after member of public hit by falling tree branch Read More »

Paddleboard tour leader jailed over deaths of four people

A paddleboard business owner has been jailed for 10 years and six months for gross negligence manslaughter following the deaths of four people in 2021. Nerys Lloyd, 39, from Aberavon, who was the owner and sole director of Salty Dog Co Ltd, was charged with the gross negligence manslaughter of Paul O’Dwyer, 42, Andrea Powell, 41, Morgan Rogers, 24, and Nicola Wheatley, 40, following their tragic deaths following the incident in Haverfordwest Town Weir on 30 October 2021.…

Paddleboard tour leader jailed over deaths of four people Read More »

Protect your workers from stress – assess the risks and act on them

April is Stress Awareness Month and HSE has a range of resources and information to help employers protect workers from stress at work. The law requires all employers to prevent work-related stress to support good mental health in the workplace.  The need to protect your workers from work-related stress, depression and anxiety falls under the provision sections 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.  …

Protect your workers from stress – assess the risks and act on them Read More »

News and Prosecutions

HSE News Wales: New partner joins HSE campaign to tackle stress in workplaces across Wales The Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) campaign aimed at preventing or combatting stress in the workplace has welcomed a new partner ahead of stress awareness month in April.  Healthy Working Wales has become the 36th organisation to join Working Minds as part of its mission to improve the health of employees across Wales. …

News and Prosecutions Read More »

Construction firm fined as HSE inspection identifies catalogue of failures

A renovation company in South Wales has been sentenced after defying enforcement notices from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Inspectors say Greenlife Property Developments Ltd failed to heed their warnings about the dangers posed to workers by a two-and-a-half metre deep excavation of the entire back garden of a house in Pit Place, Cwmbach, Aberdare.…

Construction firm fined as HSE inspection identifies catalogue of failures Read More »

Silhouette Construction workers on a scaffold

Company fined for unsafe scaffolding

In May 2021, the workplace regulator identified serious issues with the construction of the scaffold and the assembly instructions had not been followed while the scaffold tower was being built on Rice Hey Road. No ladder was used access the scaffold. Instead, workers climbed the rungs of the scaffold itself as opposed to a proprietary ladder.

Company fined for unsafe scaffolding Read More »

Release of a video on the FaceFit Respirator Demonstrator model (FFRED)

Video on the Face Fit Respirator Demonstrator Model (FFRED) This video demonstrates the importance of: fitting your respirator correctly conducting face fit testing of tight-fitting RPE to individual wearers ensuring a proper seal to the face considering other personal protective equipment (PPE) worn in conjunction with the respirator It is important that your respirator is adequate and suitable for the work being carried out.…

Release of a video on the FaceFit Respirator Demonstrator model (FFRED) Read More »

School Academy Trust fined £300,000 after student death

A school academy trust has been fined £300,000 after a 19-year-old student died as a result of a ‘series of management failures’. Owen Garnett, who was described by his family as having “an incredible sense of humour” and who had “everything to live for” died two days after choking on a paper towel at Welcombe Hills School in Stratford-upon-Avon on 9 January 2023.…

School Academy Trust fined £300,000 after student death Read More »

25 years on from the UK’s final asbestos ban, the material remains the biggest cause of work-related deaths

This month marks the 25th anniversary since legislation came into force across Great Britain and in Northern Ireland (the UK) making it illegal for anyone to buy, sell, import or export any materials containing asbestos. Laid before parliament in August 1999, but brought into force on 24 November of that year, the Asbestos (Prohibitions) (Amendment) Regulations 1999 extended existing controls to include all remaining asbestos containing materials, notably Chrysotile (white) asbestos; legislation in 1985 had banned the importation of Amosite (brown) asbestos and Crocidolite (blue) asbestos, which are more hazardous to human health.…

25 years on from the UK’s final asbestos ban, the material remains the biggest cause of work-related deaths Read More »

ACAS updates its sexual harassment guidance in light of new duty

On 26 October 2024, the new duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent workplace sexual harassment took effect. Acas has now updated its sexual harassment guidance to take account of the new law. New duty now in force Employers are now under a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent workplace sexual harassment (Preventative Duty).…

ACAS updates its sexual harassment guidance in light of new duty Read More »

Scroll to Top