News and Knowledge

No Falls Week: Bradford builder sentenced after fatal fall of asylum seeker

The No Falls Foundation, a UK-based charity, is launching its annual No Falls Week campaign to promote safety working at heights.   The foundation is dedicated to preventing falls from heights and helping those affected by life-changing consequences, as the most frequent cause of fatal accidents involving construction workers continues to be working from heights.…

Military bomb disposal officer blames explosives for his bladder cancer

David Young, a former staff sergeant in the British Army during the 1970s, has revealed that exposure to hazardous explosives during his service led to his bladder cancer diagnosis.   He claims that he handled highly toxic materials, including nitrobenzene, without proper personal protective equipment (PPE), significantly increasing his cancer risk.     The extent…

Sunderland shipyard crush incident captured on CCTV

A workplace accident has been captured on CCTV, showing the moment a welder suffered a crushing injury.   On the 18th of October 2022, an incident at Pallion Shipyard in Sunderland left David Vinsome with multiple rib fractures and internal injuries, including a burst abdominal wall. The Health and Safety Executive has shared the footage…

Roofer receives suspended sentence after employee falls from scaffold

A self-employed roofer has been handed a suspended prison sentence following serious injuries of a worker falling from scaffold.   A 16-week custodial sentence was handed down to Daniel Hooper, to be suspended for 12 months, after 36-year-old Iain Smith fell over 25 feet whilst working for Hooper on a scaffold on the 13th of…

Accidents at Work: Company and director sentenced for putting workers at risk

A roofing firm has been fined and its director has been handed a suspended prison sentence after the lives of workers were put at risk during a renovation in Surrey.   Weather Master Roofing Limited and company director Jack Avanzo, also known as Jack Avenzo, were sentenced at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Monday following a…

Nearly two million Brits suffered illness or injury at work this year

Almost two million British workers suffered an injury or illness caused by their job in the past year, figures have revealed.   The Health and Safety Executive this week published their workplace statistics for 23/24 which highlights how many employees are suffering at the hands of their employer.     The statistics reveal that the…

Ginsters fined £1.28million after employee killed by lorry

The owner of Ginsters has been fined £1.28 million after an employee was killed by a lorry that was delivering supplies to the bakery where it makes its pasties.   Paul Clarke was fatally crushed on 2 December 2021 after being struck by the vehicle as it reversed into a loading bay at The Cornwall…

MoD admits it ‘did not do enough’ after soldier dies during training exercise

The Ministry of Defence has been handed a sanction by the Health and Safety Executive after a reservist died during a training exercise in North Yorkshire.   Staff Sergeant John McKelvie, 51, died in hospital after the Jackal he was driving rolled down a hill and overturned during an off-roading exercise at Catterick Training Area…

Did you work at Tata Steel?

Port Talbot’s Tata Steelworks shut down this week, resulting in 2,800 jobs being put at risk.   Earlier this year it was announced that Tata was making job cuts after plans were released to go ahead with a greener form of steelmaking.     Tata Steel, announced plans to produce steel more environmentally friendly, using…

Company fined £40,000 after explosion at factory

A chemical factory has been fined following an explosion at its factory in the Scottish Borders.   The blast at Rathburn Chemicals in Walkerburn on 10 January 2020 resulted in a laboratory, which was part of the factory, being demolished.     According to the Health and Safety Executive, it was likely caused by excessive…