HSE Prosecutes Kubik Homes Ltd and Bellway Developments Ltd
Friday, September 30th, 2011
Kubik Homes Ltd, Principal Contractor and Bellway Developments Ltd, Sub-Contractor were prosecuted by the HSE for inexcusable reasons. Their work at London Borough, Merton was very bad. The HSE had made visits to the site in Wimbledon a number of times.
HSE banned Kubik Homes four times earlier; they had once infringed even when the HSE inspectors were present at the site. The hearing was at London Magistrates’ Court.
On the St. Mary’s Road site, there was no protected entrance to reach the first floor, which was under construction. They had made a temporary staircase using heaps of blocks and a bag of sand. This staircase led to the roof of a hut. Wooden floorboards made pathway to reach the first floor from the roof of the hut. This pathway had no shields to prevent falls.
The inspectors from HSE visited the site and saw that the wooden passage, made the previous day lacked safety. An area of 2.5 metre depth had neither any safety measures to avoid anyone from slipping nor preventing the collapse of its sides on those inside.
The site area was rough, beset with dangerous materials and barriers. The construction materials, piled up extremely tall and in a chaotic manner were a threat to safety. First aid and safety services on the site were of very low quality. Even the toilet had leaky cold water supply and was extremely dirty.
The HSE sent three notices to Kubik Homes to stop work until they enhanced their measures and met basic health and safety standards. When the inspectors paid a visit to the site, there was a shield for the edges in the first floor but it was not sufficient. The executives from the two companies had no proper experience, training, or skill in site management.
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