• Father-of-one Joseph Tuck sustained serious spinal injuries that prevented him returning to a physical job.

• Simple measures to prevent a fall, including securing the stairwell cover or installing edge protection, were not in place.

• HSE identified multiple failures in the management of work at height.

A domestic house builder in Sowerby Bridge was fined after a labourer sustained serious spinal injuries when he fell one storey onto concrete through a stairwell opening.

It was only his second week on the job when Mr Joseph Tuck, 24, a father of one, stepped backwards and fell through an opening intended for a staircase that had not yet been installed. He was working as a temporary labourer for a scaffolding company in January 2024 at a site of four new domestic dwellings being constructed by Hillbeck Homes (Sowerby Bridge) Ltd.

The stairwell opening had not been securely covered (previous loose scaffold boards had been removed) and the open edges were not protected. There were no alternative means of accessing the sub-floor and West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue and the HART team had to rescue Mr. Tuck who had fallen unconscious. He sustained serious spinal injuries which prevented him from working for months after the incident and has not returned to a physical job since.

An HSE investigation found that Hillbeck Homes (Sowerby Bridge) Ltd had failed to put adequate measures in place to prevent falls from height, resulting in Mr Tuck falling through an unprotected stairwell opening and suffering life-changing injuries.

HSE guidance states that employers must take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent and mitigate falls when working at height. This includes properly planning the work, carrying out task-specific risk assessments, and putting in place physical safeguards such as scaffolding, guardrails or coverings to prevent falls, including where there is a risk of falling through openings in floors, roofs or other work platforms. Further guidance can be found here: Work at Height – HSE.

HSE Inspector Louise Redgrove said:

“Falls from height remain one of the leading causes of death in the construction industry, accounting for around a quarter of all fatal injuries to workers each year.

“This was a wholly avoidable incident caused by basic failures in planning and supervision. The stairwell opening was not adequately protected, and simple measures such as securing the scaffold boards or installing edge protection would have prevented Mr Tuck from falling and sustaining serious spinal injuries.

“This fine should serve as a clear reminder to the construction industry that both the courts and HSE take breaches of health and safety law extremely seriously.

“HSE will not hesitate to take enforcement action where employers fail to take the necessary steps to protect workers from harm.”

Hillbeck Homes (Sowerby Bridge) Ltd formerly of 1 Bretton Place, Otley Road, Guiseley, Leeds LS20 8FL was found guilty on three charges.  They failed to properly plan and appropriately supervise work at height and to take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent a fall.  The company was fined £300,000 and ordered to pay £9,284.05 in costs at Leeds Magistrates’ Court on 16 September 2026.

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Matthew Reynolds and paralegal officer Henrietta Ruthven.

Further Information

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases are available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here Introduction to working at height safely – HSE; The Work at Height Regulations 2005
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Samworth Brothers Ltd, which owns Ginsters, Soreen and West Cornwall Pasty Co. brands, handed six-figure fine over failings.
• An employee and a contractor suffered scald injuries after being splashed with hot water while carrying out maintenance of steam pipework at the manufacturer’s Kettleby Foods factory in Melton Mowbray.
• HSE investigation found the company failed to assess risks of the maintenance task and that isolation and lock-off procedures were not followed.

A major food manufacturing company has been fined £594,000 following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), after an employee and their colleague suffered scald injuries when they were carrying out maintenance work on steam pipework in the company’s factory in Melton Mowbray.

The two men were working at the Kettleby Foods factory, operated by Samworth Brothers Ltd, which owns popular food brands including Ginsters, West Cornwall Pasty Co. and Soreen, when they were scalded by hot water from the pipework.

The men were working to replace a leaking gasket in an isolation valve on steam pipework in the boiler room of the factory. They were undertaking the work from a gantry above the boiler. The gantry didn’t provide access to the specific part of the pipework they were working on, and so both men had to step off the gantry and work on top of the boiler. When they removed the gasket, they were both splashed with hot water from the pipework, suffering scald injuries. One of the men suffered 4-5% subdermal burns, and the other suffered 9% subdermal, second-degree burns.

The investigation by HSE found that Samworth Brothers Limited had failed to risk assess the task and failed to document a safe system of work for the work being undertaken. The investigation found that suitable isolation and lock-off procedures were not used at the time of the incident, and that the work was undertaken at height without sufficient measures in place to prevent a fall from height. There was a lack of adequate supervision and monitoring procedures in place to ensure that expected processes were followed.

HSE guidance states that adequate planning of tasks requiring isolation means there should be preparation and coordination of job documentation such as risk assessments, method statements, permits and isolation certificates. The integrity of isolations should be proved before proceeding with intrusive work. When working at height, employers should make sure work is properly planned, supervised and carried out by competent people, including using the right type of equipment for working at height.

HSE Inspector Stacey Gamwell said:

“A company this size should have known better.

“This was a wholly avoidable incident which could have resulted in even more serious consequences.

“If Samworth Brothers Ltd had properly risk-assessed the task, they would have identified the need for proper controls for working at height, as well as robust isolation and lock-off procedures, including supervision and monitoring to make sure those procedures and controls were properly enforced.

“Their failure led to severe and painful scalding injuries which should never have happened.

“The result handed down should serve as a warning to employers; when it comes to keeping people safe, HSE won’t hesitate to take action against firms which fall short.”

Samworth Brothers Limited, of Chetwode House, 1 Samworth Way, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £594,000 and ordered to pay £5,834 in prosecution costs, in full, and a £2,000 victim surcharge, at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on 4 September 2026. The company was also ordered to pay £6,000 in compensation to the injured employee. All sums are to be paid by 4 January 2027.

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Andrew Siddall and paralegal officer Thomas Smith.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here: The safe isolation of plant and equipment – HSE
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Worker sustained life-changing injuries after a 1.2-tonne crate fell from a forklift truck.
• HSE investigation found unloading operation was poorly planned, not assessed and unsupervised.
• Case highlights the importance of properly managing non-standard lifting operations.

A Hull business has been sentenced after safety breaches resulted in a 64-year-old employee sustaining life-changing injuries.

Smith & Nephew Medical Ltd was sentenced on 14 September 2026 after Mr Dubey, an employee of Nippon Express (UK) Ltd, was seriously injured when a crate weighing approximately 1.2 tonnes fell from a forklift truck.

Hull Crown Court heard that on 22 December 2020, Mr Dubey was delivering a large crate containing an electron microscope to Smith & Nephew Medical Ltd’s site. Nippon Express had originally intended to provide a forklift truck and driver for the delivery. However, due to restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, Smith & Nephew Medical Ltd sought to reduce the number of people on site and took responsibility for unloading the goods.

The task was not properly assessed, planned or supervised. As a result, Mr Dubey was positioned unsafely and the load was lifted in an unsafe manner, causing the crate to fall from the forklift truck and land on him, resulting in life-changing injuries.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Smith & Nephew Medical Ltd had failed to adequately plan the unloading operation. There was no assessment of the suitability of the company’s two-tonne forklift truck in relation to the characteristics of the load. The company also failed to consider how the lift should be carried out, who should be involved and what precautions were necessary. The unloading operation was not meaningfully controlled or supervised.

HSE guidance on planning and organising lifting operations states that lifting operations can often put people at great risk of injury, as well as incurring great costs when they go wrong. It is therefore important to properly resource, plan and organise lifting operations so they are carried out in a safe manner.

Smith & Nephew Medical Ltd, of Hull, was found guilty of breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £230,000 and ordered to pay £111,000 in costs.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector David Stewart said:

“The company should have had clear procedures in place setting out how deliveries were to be managed and what safety measures were required for third parties attending site. These requirements did not change just because normal delivery arrangements at Smith & Nephew had changed, due to restrictions on third-party access during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If Smith & Nephew were not to play any role in unloading deliveries, this should have been clearly specified. If third parties were permitted to take part, including supervising or guiding a forklift truck driver, this should also have been clearly defined, along with the actions necessary to ensure their safety.

“This case should serve as a reminder to the wider industry of the need to properly plan and supervise unloading operations, particularly where non-standard loads are involved. Such operations require a risk assessment proportionate to the hazards, taking account of the nature of the load, the suitability of lifting equipment and the arrangements for execution and supervision.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Jonathan Bambro and paralegal officer Rebecca Forman.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here: Planning and organising lifting operations – HSE.
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Maintenance engineer suffered catastrophic, life-changing injuries after his arm was pulled into an unguarded conveyor
• Working alone, he waved at a CCTV camera for help after becoming trapped in the machinery
• Factory Services UK Limited fined £160,000 after pleading guilty to health and safety breaches

A Merseyside animal‑feed manufacturer has been sentenced after a maintenance engineer suffered severe, life‑changing injuries when his arm was drawn into an unguarded conveyor.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Factory Services UK Limited allowed workers access to dangerous parts of machinery for many years at its site on Moorgate Road, Deacon Park, Knowsley Industrial Park, L33 7RX.

On 18 March 2025, maintenance engineer Daniel Slinger was working a nightshift when he was asked to look at an issue on a conveyor. While the conveyor was still running, Mr Slinger reached through a hole in the side of the conveyor casing to clear away some material. His arm was pulled into the moving machinery. There was no guard in place and no emergency stop button in the area.

Working alone at the time, there was nobody nearby to see or hear what had happened. In an effort to raise the alarm, he repeatedly waved at a CCTV camera in the hope that someone monitoring the system would spot him and come to his aid, nobody did. Eventually, after 40 seconds, he was able to free his arm. This was despite the company’s own safe systems of work requiring machinery to be guarded and isolated before any maintenance or cleaning activity was carried out.

Mr Slinger suffered catastrophic injuries to his forearm and hand, including a fracture and extensive degloving. He required multiple operations, blood transfusions and continues to receive ongoing specialist treatment. He remains unable to return to work.

HSE’s investigation established that the hole had been cut into the conveyor years earlier to allow workers to clear blockages while the machine remained in operation. A second conveyor on site was also found to have a similar unauthorised access point. Despite routine inspections, management walkarounds and audits, the dangerous modifications had not been identified or rectified.

Following the incident, the company fitted a fixed mesh guard and installed an emergency stop button at the location.

Factory Services UK Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on 8 September 2026. They were fined £160,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4728.

Following the hearing, HSE Inspector, Ian Betley, said:

“Mr Slinger suffered devastating and life-altering injuries as a result of this preventable incident. Had the correct protections been in place he would not have been exposed to the dangerous parts of a running conveyor through a hole cut into the machine.

“Factory Services UK Limited had risk assessments and safe systems of work, but they were not followed or enforced. Employers must ensure guarding is properly maintained, safe systems are implemented, and workers are protected from foreseeable risks.”

This prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Alan Hughes and paralegal officer Henrietta Ruthven.

Further Information

1. Guidance on the safe use of work equipment, including guarding requirements, can be found here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l22.htm
2. Further details on the latest HSE news releases are available at: https://press.hse.gov.uk/
3. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect fines. Sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found at: https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/sentencing-and-the-council/about-sentencing-guidelines/about-published-guidelines/health-and-safety-offences-corporate-manslaughter-and-food-safety-and-hygiene-offences/

• Gheorghita Arsene, 33, died after being buried under around two tonnes of soil when the trench collapsed at a site in Banstead on 24 June 2020.
• A joint investigation found that the trench had no supports to prevent it from collapsing and soil had been piled right next to the edge.
• The collapse happened during work to replace a damaged pipe at the bottom of a deep excavation.

Two companies and a self-employed contracts manager have been sentenced after a worker was crushed to death when an unsupported trench collapsed at a site in Surrey.

Gheorghita Arsene, 33, who was known as Geo, was working at a site on Park Road, Banstead, Surrey on 24 June 2020. He had been working to replace a damaged pipe at the bottom of the deep trench, which had been dug with a three-tonne digger. He had been clearing soil with a shovel and a pickaxe when, without warning, the trench walls collapsed. Although rescue attempts were made, he was buried in approximately 2 tonnes of soil and sadly died at the scene.

A joint investigation by Surrey Police and the Health and Safety Executive over five years found there were no supports in the trench and excavated soil had been deposited immediately next to it. The investigation also found that, earlier that day, Anthony O’Connor a self-employed contracts manager working for T Vaughan Limited, had observed another worker in the same unsupported excavation earlier that day. Despite being aware of the measures required to prevent a trench collapse, he failed to ensure they were in place.

Earlier that day, O’Connor had observed another worker carrying out work in the same unsupported excavation. As an experienced contracts manager, he knew suitable measures were required to prevent a trench collapse but failed to ensure they were implemented.

Following a trial at the Old Bailey on 9 September 2026, principal contractor Appledorn Developments Limited and subcontractor T Vaughan Limited were convicted of breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

T Vaughan Limited was fined £650,000 and ordered to pay costs of £40,000.

Appledorn Developments Limited was fined £500,000.

Anthony O’Connor, a self-employed contracts manager working for T Vaughan Limited, pleaded guilty on 22 May 2026 to breaching Section 7 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 by failing to take reasonable care for the health and safety of others who may have been affected by his acts or omissions at work.

He was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work.

A Health and Safety Executive spokesperson said:

“Gheorghita Arsene’s death was as horrifying as it was preventable. He lost his life because basic precautions were not in place to protect workers from the well-known risks that come with excavation work. Anthony O’Connor had observed workers in the trench without adequate protection and was aware of the measures required to prevent a collapse.

“This case is a stark reminder that when basic safety standards are ignored, the consequences can be fatal. Companies and individuals alike have legal duties to protect workers and where they fail to do so, and we will not hesitate to take enforcement action.

“Our thoughts today are with Mr Arsene’s loved ones, as they mourn their loss.”

This prosecution was brought by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Further Information 

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives
2. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available. 
3. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.   

• Worker suffered multiple fractures after arm was caught in unguarded conveyor machinery.
• HSE investigation found the company failed to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery.
• HSE guidance explains employers must take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous machinery.

A baked goods manufacturer has been fined £333,333 after a worker suffered multiple fractures, including a broken arm when it became entangled in a sausage roll conveyor line.

Ribeca Jesuthasan was working for David Wood Baking Limited at the company’s food manufacturing factory in Sheerness, Kent, on 1 December 2023.

Ms Jesuthasan was cleaning a sausage roll production line when she passed her hand through an unguarded conveyor roller. Although the conveyor line had initially been switched off, it began to operate while she was cleaning it.

Her arm was pulled into the rotating roller, causing multiple fractures.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that David Wood Baking Limited had failed to prevent access to the rotating parts of the sausage roll conveyor line.

Employers have a legal duty to take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery. This will normally involve the use of fixed guarding. Where routine access is required, interlocked guards may be necessary to prevent dangerous parts moving before a person can reach the danger zone.

HSE guidance, A recipe for safety: Health and safety in food and drink manufacture (HSG252), covers the main health and safety hazards in the food and drink industries and provides practical advice on how to manage the associated risks.

David Wood Baking Limited of Calverley Road, Leeds, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. The company was fined £333,333 and ordered to pay £7644 in costs at Medway Court on 1 September 2026.

HSE inspector Delcina Burden said:

“Too many workers are seriously injured every year as a result of contact with dangerous parts of machinery due to inadequate or absent guarding.

“If simple measures had been taken, this incident could have been avoided.

“The sentence handed down by the court in this case should demonstrate that the courts and HSE take breaches of health and safety law seriously. We will not hesitate to take action against companies that fail to do all they can to keep people safe.”

The HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Iain Jordan, paralegal officer Anushka Lulith, and prosecution advocate Ruksana Begum.

Further information

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so. The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Pelagia Shetland Limited fined after man was injured in machinery
• 41-year-old was clearing a blockage when the machine restarted
• He was airlifted to hospital after suffering multiple broken bones

A fish processing company has been fined £451,500 after a supervisor suffered multiple fractures and two collapsed lungs when he became entangled in a palletiser machine at its Lerwick plant.

Pelagia Shetland Limited, of Point of Scattland, Gremista, Lerwick, pleaded guilty to health and safety failings following the incident.

On 10 October 2024, Curtis New, a 41-year-old forklift supervisor was called to clear a blockage and, finding an interlocking safety gate difficult to open, removed a panel and entered the machine area. As he walked along the stationary conveyor to reach the blockage, he triggered a sensor which restarted the machine, and he was struck repeatedly by its pushers before a colleague hit an emergency stop button.

Mr New was treated at the scene by first aiders before being airlifted to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, where he spent 10 days in intensive care and a further 10 days in a high dependency unit. He suffered eight fractured ribs, a pelvis fractured in five places, a fractured clavicle and scapula, and two collapsed lungs. He was later transferred to Gilbert Bain Hospital for rehabilitation, and has since said he does not wish to return to his role.

An investigation by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors found that perimeter safety fencing around the machine, designed to isolate its power supply whenever the interlocking safety gate was opened, had become insecure after a panel was damaged.

The gate had been struck by a forklift truck in early 2024, damaging its locking mechanism and making it difficult to open. Rather than use the gate, two senior staff, including Mr New, had taken to removing the loose panel to clear frequent blockages in the machine, without isolating the power first.

Pelagia Shetland reported the incident to HSE on the day it happened and following an investigation, the company reinstated its perimeter fencing so that the gate is now the only means of accessing the machine. They also updated safety practices to make clear that staff must never bypass safety barriers, on pain of disciplinary action.

Pelagia Shetland Limited, of Point of Scattland, Gremista, Lerwick, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulations 11 (1) and (2) of The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £420,000 and must pay a victim surcharge of £31,500 at Lerwick Sheriff Court on 26 August 2026.

HSE inspector Matty Spiers said:

“This was a wholly avoidable incident that left a man with life-threatening injuries, and it happened because a basic, well-understood safety control was allowed to fail.

“Interlocking guards exist for one reason: to stop people reaching dangerous machinery while it’s still live. When that gate was damaged, it should have been repaired properly and its integrity restored immediately, not left in a state where a determined employee could simply lift out a panel and walk into a hazardous area.

“Curtis New is fortunate to be alive. He suffered catastrophic injuries carrying out a task that should never have been possible without the machine being isolated first.

“Employers have a legal duty to make sure guarding and interlock systems are properly maintained, and that any weakness is identified and corrected without delay. This isn’t a bureaucratic box-ticking exercise, it’s what stands between a workforce and a serious, life-changing injury.”

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences in Scotland can be found here.

• Lift supervisor struck and fatally injured by a telehandler on a construction site in Cheshire.
• HSE found the driver had chosen to reverse without a banksman despite a clear turning circle being available.
• Driver had also been using his mobile phone while in control of the vehicle, contrary to site rules.
• Telehandler operator given a 12-week suspended custodial sentence and fined £800.

A self-employed telehandler driver has been sentenced after he reversed over his colleague on a construction site in Cheshire, causing fatal injuries.

In June 2023, 49-year-old James Connolly was working as a lift supervisor on a large construction site in Ince, Ellesmere Port, where Michael Nixon was working as a telehandler operator.

On the morning of 11 June, whilst walking back to his work area from the welfare compound, Mr Connolly was struck and reversed over by the telehandler being operated by Michael Nixon, resulting in fatal injuries.

In a victim personal statement, Jamie’s mother Pauline Connolly said:

“I have constant flashbacks to that day and every time we get a phone call my heart drops and I fear the worst news, I am always saying, ‘who is it? What is it?’

“Every time I see someone in a high viz jacket and a hard hat, I think it is Jamie. I am changed forever since my son’s death. I miss and think about him every day. My first-born child. My only son.”

Jamie’s daughter Amelia Connolly said:

“I struggle with a great deal of anger. I am angry that my dad went to work and never came home. Alongside the sadness there is also a constant sense of injustice. It is difficult to accept that someone could leave home for work and never return to their family.”

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found that the principal contractor had taken steps to minimise the need for reversing on site, including the creation of a turning circle, which was unobstructed at the time of the incident. Despite this, Michael Nixon, who was a qualified and experienced telehandler operator, chose to reverse the vehicle without the aid of a banksman, with tragic consequences.

The investigation also found that Michael Nixon had been using his mobile phone whilst in control of the telehandler, contrary to the site rules he had signed up to.

HSE publication The safe use of vehicles on construction sites HSG144 sets out the risks involved and ways of avoiding reversing on construction sites, as well as setting out a checklist of safe working practices for drivers to follow.

Michael Nixon, 46, of Deeside, Heswall, Wirral, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

He was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, and fined £800. He was also ordered to pay £2,000 in costs, at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on 11 August 2026.

HSE Principal Inspector Laura Royales said:

“Workplace transport incidents remain one of the biggest causes of deaths in the workplace. It is vital that drivers follow the site rules and do not cut corners and put lives at risk.

“Our thoughts remain with the family of James Connolly.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Nathan Cook and paralegal officer Benjamin Stobbart. The investigation was supported by Visiting Officer Sarah Ough.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here The safe use of vehicles on construction sites HSG144
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Worker suffered a severe crush injury when their hand was drawn into the rollers of a laminating machine.
• Same company was fined £277,500 in November 2025 following a fatal incident at another of its sites.
• HSE found company had failed to provide a fixed guard to prevent access to the dangerous nip point during cleaning.
• Company fined £60,000 after pleading guilty to health and safety offences.

A plastic packaging manufacturer has been fined for the second time in less than a year after a worker suffered a severe crush injury when their hand was drawn into the rollers of a laminating machine at its site in Telford.

Reflex Flexible Packaging Limited was sentenced in November 2025 after an employee died when he became trapped in an unguarded machine at the company’s site in Langley Mill, Derbyshire. This latest case relates to a separate incident on 17 January 2025, at the company’s Telford premises, when a worker suffered serious injuries while cleaning a machine.

The worker, a laminator operative and shift supervisor employed by the company, was injured while cleaning a laminator machine at the company’s premises on Halesfield, Telford.

The worker was cleaning the machine’s rollers using rags after a production run had finished. As they cleaned the machine, a rag became caught between two in-running rollers and pulled their left hand into the nip point between them. Their hand was drawn into the machine up to the wrist.

A colleague immediately activated the emergency stop, allowing the worker to free their hand from the machine. They were taken to hospital with a severe crush injury. The worker underwent two operations on their left hand, spent four nights in hospital and later required physiotherapy to rebuild strength in the injured hand.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Reflex Flexible Packaging Limited had failed to ensure effective measures were in place to prevent access to the dangerous moving parts of the laminating machine.

The company had failed to provide a fixed guard to prevent access to the in-running nip point between the rollers during cleaning operations. The HSE investigation also revealed that the company’s risk assessment and safe system of work were not suitable and sufficient. The cleaning operation had not been properly assessed and the risk of a worker being drawn into the machine during cleaning had not been identified. The safe system of work also failed to provide clear instructions regarding the use of the foot pedal to rotate the rollers during the cleaning process.

HSE guidance states that employers must take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery. Where access to dangerous parts is foreseeable, employers should follow the hierarchy of control measures set out in the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, giving priority to engineering controls such as fixed guarding wherever reasonably practicable.

Risk assessments should consider not only normal production activities, but also tasks such as cleaning, maintenance and repair where dangerous parts may become accessible to workers.

Further guidance can be found here:

Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) – HSE

Safe use of work equipment: Approved Code of Practice and guidance – HSE

Reflex Flexible Packaging Limited, of Vision House, Hamilton Way, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, NG18 5BU, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

The company was fined £60,000 and ordered to pay £4,464 in costs at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on 10 August 2026.

HSE Inspector Zach Morris said:

“This incident was entirely preventable. Reflex Flexible Packaging Limited failed to ensure that effective measures were in place to prevent access to dangerous parts of the laminating machine during cleaning operations.

“This is the second time in less than a year that this company has been sentenced for health and safety offences, following a fatal incident at another of its sites. Dangerous moving parts of machinery continue to cause serious injuries in workplaces across Great Britain. Dutyholders should not focus solely on normal machine operation when considering access to dangerous parts. They must also consider activities such as cleaning, maintenance, and repair where workers may be exposed to dangerous parts of machinery that are inaccessible during normal operations.

“HSE will not hesitate to take enforcement action against dutyholders who fail to protect workers from these well-known and foreseeable risks.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Neenu Bains and paralegal officer Benjamin Stobbart.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/work-equipment-machinery/puwer.htm
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Worker suffered broken ribs and a fractured collarbone after falling from stepladder.
• Ladders stored outside were in poor condition and accessible to employees, who were not trained on how to assess a ladder as being safe.
• Latest HSE statistics show falls from height remain the leading cause of workplace death and injury.

Wirral Council has been fined £6000 after an employee suffered serious injuries when a stepladder collapsed beneath him.

The Wirral Council Employee was attempting to access a loft space at the Council-operated Dale Farm site in Heswall, Wirral, when the incident occurred.

As he neared the top of the stepladder, it gave way causing him to fall to the ground. He suffered a fractured collarbone and broken ribs.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Wirral Council had failed to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of its employees by not adequately controlling the risks associated with working at height and the use of ladders.

The investigation identified failures in the Council’s management of work at height activities. Ladder use was not effectively controlled and despite identifying ladders that were not in a good state of repair and unsafe to use, they remained in place, accessible to any employee who wanted to use them. Furthermore, employees had not received training in in relation to how to assess a ladder as being safe to use.

HSE guidance, produced in partnership with the Ladder Association, sets out the practical steps employers should take to ensure ladders are used safely at work. Further HSE guidance explains the measures employers should take to prevent falls when working at height.

Wirral MBC pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The Council was fined £6000 and ordered to pay £4000 in costs at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on 11^th August 2026.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Mike Lisle said:

“This worker suffered painful and life-changing injuries in a fall that could have been prevented.

“The council failed to put in place basic measures to manage the risks associated with working at height. Employees had not received suitable training and ladders were not being systematically inspected to ensure they were safe.

“Employers should ensure suitable equipment is properly maintained, workers are trained and robust arrangements are in place for all work at height activities.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement Lawyer Matthew Reynolds and paralegal officer Lynne Thomas.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here:
   LA455-Safe-Use-of-Ladders-and-Stepladders-A-brief-guide.pdf
   Working at height: A brief guide
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.