News

Wood company fined more than £1million after two workers injured

A multi-national company that manufactures wood-based products has been fined more than £1 million after two workers were injured in separate incidents. West Fraser (Europe) Ltd, formerly known as Norbord pleaded guilty to several health and safety breaches related to two incidents that took place at its plant in Cowie within six months of each […]

Roofer given suspended sentence after man falls from scaffold

A self-employed roofer has received a suspended prison sentence after a man suffered serious injuries after falling from scaffold in Devon. Daniel Hooper was given a 16-week custodial sentence, which will be suspended for a period of 12 months, following Iain Smith, 36, falling from a height of more than 25 feet while working for […]

New guidance to protect those using gas and air safely in hospitals

New guidance to protect Britain’s midwives from excessive nitrous oxide exposure has been published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The guidance is aimed at those responsible for ensuring the safety of workers and new mothers on maternity wards. More commonly known as ‘gas and air’ when mixed with oxygen, nitrous oxide is an […]

Offshore industry reaps benefits from HSE inspection programme

HSE programme has led to greater collaboration amongst offshore companies HSE inspected various North Sea production operators as they determined how PSLP was being adopted A report on the PSLP inspection programme was published today (Thursday 6 February 2025) An inspection programme by Britain’s workplace regulator has led to major safety improvements in the offshore […]

Company fined for failures at waste and recycling centre

A company that operates several household waste and recycling centres in Wales has been fined for failing to protect workers and members of the public. Sundorne Products (Llanidloes) Limited pleaded guilty to the failures identified at Llandrindod Wells Household Waste and Recycling Centre in Powys. The charges arose following an inspection by the Health and […]

Sheffield skip hire boss avoids immediate spell behind bars

The director of a Sheffield-based skip hire company has avoided an immediate spell behind bars after being found guilty of multiple breaches of health and safety law. Following an investigation and subsequent prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Jamie White, the director of M White (Skips) Limited, was given an eight month custodial […]

Repeated wood dust failures lands company with fine

An Essex-based company that makes windows and doors has been hit with a £4,000 fine after repeatedly failing to protect its workers from exposure to wood dust. Timbercraft Windows & Doors Limited, which also manufactures wooden conservatories, was visited by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) on three occasions over a 12-year period. Those visits, […]

HSE v Amber Precast Ltd: Injured worker reacts

‘It was a massive strain on us,’ says dad left disabled from horrific incident HSE subsequently prosecuted Amber Precast Ltd, with company fined £60,000 A father-of-two has revealed he was forced to move homes and unable to say goodbye to his dad after sustaining life-changing injuries following a horrific incident at work. Wayne Hatton’s legs […]

Fine for company after worker fell to his death from church steeple

A specialist construction company has been fined £60,000 after a worker fell to his death from a church steeple in Birmingham. David Clover was employed by Ecclesiastical Steeplejacks Ltd to carry out restoration work to St Nicholas’ Church in Kings Norton on 13 November 2020. The 64-year-old steeplejack had been suspended from the 60 metre […]

Company fined after repeatedly exposing workers to risks from wood dust

A Blackburn-based furniture manufacturer has been fined after it repeatedly failed to protect its own workers from exposure to wood dust. Pendle Woodcraft (Blackburn) Limited failed to implement safe working practices despite earlier interventions from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The company consistently failed to control the accumulation of wood dust at its site […]

Fine for Kent timber firm after worker loses three fingers

A company has been fined after an employee had three fingers severed by a panel saw at work. David Broadway, 36, had been working at Pemberton Timber Frame Limited, a company that manufactures timber frame structures for the construction industry, at its site in Evelyn Way in Ramsgate on the morning of 4 January 2023. […]

Fine for MOT testing centre after child crushed by car

An MOT Testing centre in Finsbury Park has been fined £10,000 after a child sustained life changing injuries after being hit by a car and crushed. A 14-year-old boy was with an adult, sitting down, waiting for an MOT to be conducted at New Auto Tech Limited on 4 May 2022. The chair was situated […]

Company fined after dad’s legs crushed by 800kg pallet

A manufacturer in Sheffield has been fined after a steel pallet landed on an employee, leaving him permanently disabled. The 800kg load crushed Wayne Hatton’s legs during a night shift at Amber Precast Ltd’s factory on 14 January 2021. Mr Hatton, from Doncaster, had his right lower leg amputated with two toes on his left […]

New simplified advice for installers of stone worktops

Britain’s workplace safety regulator has published a helpful guide of do’s and don’ts for people installing stone worktops. The Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) guidance is designed to remind dutyholders and workers about the need to ensure that suitable procedures and controls are in place to help protect against exposure to stone dust and prevent […]

Stone company fined after repeatedly failing to protect workers

A company that produces stone products and its director have been fined a total of just under £20,000 after repeatedly failing to protect workers from exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS). The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out several inspections on Warmsworth Stone Limited, which produces carved stone masonry products using limestone, sandstone, granite […]

Company fined after barn roof fall

A company has been fined £133,000 after a man was left seriously injured when he fell through a barn roof in Southampton. The 37-year-old from Bursledon had been helping his friend repair a fire-damaged storage barn at Dodwell Farm Limited on Pylands Lane on 9 February 2023. The father-of-one had been at the top of […]

Health and Safety Executive turns 50

The national regulator for health and safety in Great Britain today (1 January) celebrates its 50th Anniversary. Created by the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was officially launched on 1st January 1975. For the last 50 years it has played a central role in reducing workplace […]