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MARCH 2016 PRO INSTALLER
PRO BUSINESS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
Health and safety specialist’s
‘Ford Factor’ warning
Health and safety specialist
Gauntlet Risk Management
is telling businesses to beware the ‘Ford Factor,’ after
the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced it will
prosecute Foodies Production (UK) Ltd following on-set
injuries suffered by actor
Harrison Ford.
NHBC reports
continued housebuilding growth
The number of new homes
registered to be built in
the UK topped 156,000 in
2015 - a continued increase
of 7% on the previous year,
new National House Building
Council (NHBC) figures have
revealed.
The statistics showed 156,140
new homes were registered representing an eight-year high.
75% more new homes were registered in 2015 than in 2009 at the
time of the housing crash.
Private sector registrations
increased by 7%, with the public
sector up by 5%. Continuing the
trend from 2014, the number of
detached homes registered over
the last 12 months (42,173) was
the highest for over a decade. Additionally, the number of semi-detached homes registered in 2015
(35,423) was the highest in more
than 20 years.
NHBC’s latest data also revealed
that most UK regions experienced
notable growth on 2014 levels,
with the eastern region up 23%,
the north west up 16% and Scotland up 15%.
The east Midlands rose 12%, and
the south west and west Mid lands
9%. Northern Ireland was up 30%
although from a relatively low
base.
London was still leading the
way in the number of new home
registrations. Yorkshire and the
Humber was down 13% on 2014
and Wales down 2% on 2014.
NHBC Chief Executive Mike
Quinton, said: “We are pleased to
report that 2015 was a year for
continued housing growth in the
UK. Both the public and private
sectors have performed well and
we have seen encouraging levels
of house-building across most
regions of the country.
“The detached home continues
its resurgence, with our figures
showing that house builders are
building the highest number of
detached properties for over a
decade, with semi-detached homes
also at their highest level in more
than 20 years.
“There is still a way to go before
we are building the levels of new
homes that were seen before the
economic downturn, but 2015
represents consolidation on the
growth seen over the last three
years.”
Source: www.nhbc.co.uk
Ford suffered a broken leg and
other injuries after being struck by
a heavy hydraulic metal door during the filming of the latest Star
Wars film. The HSE’s view is that
Foodies Production (UK) Ltd did
not act within UK health and safety law, which obliges employers
to take reasonable steps to protect
workers. It has identified four
alleged breaches of health and
safety law and Foodies Production
(UK) Ltd will appear in Court on
May 12 to answer the charges.
In another case, an HSE investigation resulted in Westminster
magistrates’ court fining glazing
company Ideal Glazing (Euro) Ltd
£36,000. The company was prose-
cuted because it carried out work
at height with no measures to prevent workers falling eight metres.
It also dropped part of a window,
narrowly missing a pedestrian. In
this case, members of the public
alerted the HSE to the dangers,
having provided photographic
evidence of working practices.
Gauntlet health and safety expert
Gary Skews says: “The HSE acted
decisively in the very high profile
case relating to Harrison Ford,
but also demonstrated that it is
ready to act on information and
evidence provided by the public when breaches of health and
safety laws occur. These cases
should serve as a warning to other
businesses around the UK. The
HSE has shown its teeth and this
can be viewed as a signal of intent
with regard to future judgements
and punishments.
“All businesses need a risk
assessment in place and any
business employing more than
five people must have a written risk assessment. Businesses
should also be doing all they can
to mitigate risk in and around the
workplace. Any employer ignoring their obligations is playing a
dangerous game and our advice
is that, if you haven’t analysed all
of the risks in your workplace, in
a competent and informed way,
you should do so with immediate
effect. If not, it could be you that
is in court, or suffering a huge
financial penalty.”
Anyone needing advice on health
and safety issues can call Gary
Skews on 0113 244 8686. More information about Gauntlet’s health
and safety services is at www.
gauntlethealthandsafety.com
CONTRACTORS LAUNCH
CONSTRUCTION
HEALTH CRUSADE
The bosses of more than
150 contractors have
signed up to prioritising
health and wellbeing in the
workplace.
Workplace ill health costs construction more than 69,000 lost
days a year. Firms have agreed to
launch a major new initiative to
transform the industry’s occupational health record, which sees
around 3,500 deaths a year from
construction related disease.
The latest new drive mirrors
the safety summit 15 years ago,
which galvanised contractors into
tackling the industry’s poor safety
record.
Chief executives have pledged
to raise occupational health as a
boardroom priority, after hearing it is costing the industry an
estimated £1.3bn a year in lost
productivity.
The firms have pledged to launch
an all-out offensive to tackle
industrial diseases like mesothelioma that alone accounts for 2,600
deaths every year.
Construction workers suffer three
times more occupational health
cancers than any other industry in
the UK.
Crossrail health and safety boss
Steve Hails said: “The industry
tends to shout about construction
safety but whispers about health.
The equivalent of 10 Airbus A380
passengers die every year in
construction from occupational
ill health and disease, which is
simply not acceptable.”
At a high level summit both
clients and contractors pledged to
transform the industry’s attitudes
and approach to preventing
respiratory diseases and mental
health issues.
Heather Bryant, Health and Safety director of Balfour Beatty said:
“The next step forward is to treat
health like it is safety. That means
planning in health at the preconstruction stage, making sure we
have got the right expertise to
support us, including occupational
health hygienists, and nominating
a senior representative at board
level to improve health and well
being within the workforce.
“The time has come for the
industry as a whole to take major
steps.”