HSE stops work at West Mids construction sites

WORK was stopped on almost one in five of West Midlands construction sites visited as part of a recent safety initiative.

Inspections made by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) were aimed at stopping dangerous practices and raising awareness of construction site risks to help prevent death and injury.

During the month-long campaign, 93 sites were visited involving 95 contractors.

Seventeen prohibition notices were issued on 17 separate sites for activities such as no edge protection installed for major roof works, incomplete scaffolds in use, missing guardrails and large gaps in scaffold platforms.

A prohibition notice is served where there is immediate danger and the work must stop immediately while the issue is resolved.

The unannounced visits focused on refurbishment or roofing work to ensure sites were managing work at height safely, kept in good order and in a reasonable state of cleanliness.

Mike Ford, HSE construction inspector for the West Midlands, said: “Generally, construction sites in the area are well supervised. But there were a few instances where sites were let down by basic flaws, most notably concerning working at height.

“The majority of contractors are trying to get it right, but there is a significant minority still failing to proactively manage their health and safety effectively.”

The HSE said that 509 people were injured while working in construction in the West Midlands during 2008/09 however there were no recorded fatalities.

Newly released figures for 2009/10 show 41 construction workers were killed at work across Britain.