A Steeplejack company failed to adequately assess the risks before starting work inside a church bell chamber, where one of its employees later fell more than six meters.
Cedars Steeplejack (Midlands) Ltd was contracted to remove bird droppings and clean the bell chamber at the Church of St Peter in Lenton, Lincolnshire. The work was part of a wider project to carry out major roof repairs on the tower.
On 12 August 2008, two workers had laid down scaffolding planks over the floorboards in the tower to support them while they were cleaning. But the floorboards were rotten and gave way when one of the workers stepped on the scaffolding boards, causing him to fall 6.3 metres to the floor below. He suffered five cracked vertebrae, a broken pelvis, and serious internal injuries. He has been unable to return to work owing to his injuries.
The HSE visited the site later that day and issued a Prohibition Notice, which required the work to stop until a suitable safe system was developed.
Cedars Steeplejack appeared at Grantham Magistrates’ Court on 15 July and pleaded guilty to breaching reg. 4(1)(a) and reg. 4(1)(c) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005, for failing to properly plan the work, and allowing it to be carried out in an unsafe manner. It was fined £6600 and ordered to pay £4774 in costs.
The court heard in mitigation that the firm had no previous convictions and had fully cooperated with the investigation. It complied with the Prohibition Notice and put in place an inertia reel system to protect the workers before restarting the job.
Following the hearing, HSE inspector Martin Giles said: “The work in the bell chamber required proper planning, as it was a difficult area to work in. Unfortunately, the system of work was unsafe and no one had properly checked the condition of the rotten floorboards before work began.
“This worker was extremely lucky to survive such a fall – but as a result he has been left with long-term injuries and is unable to work.”
The inspector concluded: “Falls from height are the biggest causes of workplace deaths and it’s crucial that employers make sure work is properly planned, appropriately supervised, and that sufficient measures are put in place to protect staff from these risks.”
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If the church had been a factory or office building, the owners would probably have ended up in court alongside the contractors. How do church authorities escape prosecution