Construction firms given health and safety warning

Published on 13 Aug 2010 under category: legal

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued a reminder to construction firms to secure their building sites during school holidays.
Figures show that one child died and 25 were seriously injured after playing on building sites last summer.
The companies involved could be facing serious negligence claims as a result of their failure to protect the public.
Philip White, the HSE's chief inspector of construction, urged firms to make sure their building sites are secure and have good fencing to prevent public access.
"Without proper precautions, construction sites are dangerous places for those who work on them day in day out, never mind the risks to children who simply see them as exciting playgrounds and don't understand the dangers," he stated.
The construction sector has the third highest rate of fatal injuries behind agriculture and extractive industries, according to HSE data.
Commonly reported injuries include falls from height, falling objects and contact with moving machinery.

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