• Regulator to protect high-rise residents in England from unsafe building practices

• 12,500 buildings must be registered with the Building Safety Regulator

• New ‘Be Ready’ campaign calls on industry to prepare for the new safety regime

Those responsible for the safety of high-rise residential buildings in England have six months from April to register with the new Building Safety Regulator.

The Building Safety Regulator was established to protect high-rise residents from unsafe building practices in England in response to the Grenfell Tower fire.

Under the Building Safety Act, high-rise residential buildings which are 18 metres tall or higher, or at least seven storeys, with two or more residential units are defined as ‘higher-risk’.

Across England there are approximately 12,500 of these buildings and the new regulator will require all of them to be registered from April 2023, with a named person responsible for maintaining their safety.

A new campaign aimed at owners and managers of high-rise residential buildings will highlight their new legal duties. It will call on those responsible for the safety management of higher-risk buildings to prepare for a new wave of regulatory change to ensure that they are ready to step up and comply.

The registration process is a crucial stage in setting up the new building safety regime.  Registering buildings in scope will be a legal requirement and owners and managers who fail to comply by October 2023 will be investigated and may face prosecution.

HSE Chief Executive Sarah Albon said: “This registration process is an important step towards building a safer future for residents of high-rise buildings. We want it to be clear where responsibility for safety in these buildings lies.

“As the Building Safety Regulator, we will draw from our experience to provide guidance and oversight for the industry and lay the foundation for a world-leading building safety regime, which is a part of our mission to protect people and places.”

Chief Inspector of Buildings Peter Baker said: “Our message is clear – industry must raise its standards and residents of high-rise buildings in England must be kept safe.

“This is a landmark moment for building safety, the information provided through registration will be an invaluable part of our crackdown on unsafe building practices. Those who are responsible for high-rise residential buildings must register; failure to do so will be against the law.”

Building registration is a major step in a package of measures to ensure high-rise residential buildings are safe for residents and users.

It follows the introduction of Planning Gateway One in August 2021 and will be followed by more robust building control of high-rise developments, and the certification of occupied high-rise buildings by the new Regulator.

A campaign will run throughout March to help owners and managers of high-rise residential buildings prepare for their legal responsibilities. For more information, go to buildingsafety.campaign.gov.uk

Notes to editors

About BSR: The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is an independent body established by the Building Safety Act, 2022, and is part of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Led by Chief Inspector of Buildings, Peter Baker, we will raise building safety and performance standards, and oversee a new stringent regime for high-rise residential buildings, as well as overseeing the wider system for regulating safety and performance of all buildings, and, increasing the competence of relevant regulators and industry professionals.

About HSE: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise.

About the Building Safety Act, 2022: The Building Safety Act gained Royal Assent on the 28 April 2022 and makes ground-breaking reforms to give residents and homeowners more rights, powers and protections. The Act overhauls existing regulations, creating lasting change and makes clear how residential buildings should be constructed, maintained and made safe. Full implementation of the Act is in October 2023, which means each building owner should have their building safety regime in place by this time.

About the CIB: As Chief Inspector of Buildings, Peter Baker will head up the Building Safety Regulator to deliver the new regime for higher-risk buildings and ensure effective oversight of the entire building safety environment.  Peter is the first head of the building control profession, and leads the work to provide independent, expert advice to industry, government, landlords and residents. Peter has over 30 years’ experience with HSE as an inspector and has held a number of senior operational positions, most recently as HSE’s Director of Building Safety and Construction. Since 2017 he has led HSE’s involvement in the Government’s Building Safety Programme.

HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

A company has been fined after an employee fractured his back and ribs following a fall from a house in Frodsham, Cheshire.

The man was working for Renka Limited after the company had been hired to supply and install windows, doors and frames at the property on Village Lane.

Renka Limited workers arrived at the property on 31 August 2021 to begin the installation of a rooflight, but the tower scaffold they had been provided with was too large and could not be positioned in the area where it was needed. As a result, the workers made a platform using the boards from the tower scaffold and wedged them between the roof joists. They then gained access to the work area via the external scaffolding.

Following the installation of the rooflight frame, one of the workers stepped from the roof onto the platform, at which point a board broke, causing him to fall approximately five metres to the ground below. As a result, the worker, who was 35 at the time, suffered fractures to his back and ribs.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Renka Limited failed to adequately plan the work at height and failed to provide suitable work equipment to enable the work to be carried out safely. The investigation also found that the company’s employees had not been provided with any instruction as to how the work should be carried out, and had not been provided with adequate training for working at height. HSE guidance on working at height can be found here: Work at height – HSE.

Renka Limited, of Birmingham Road, Marlbrook, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £3863.25 in costs at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on 20 February 2023.

HSE inspector Sara Andrews said: “The incident could have been prevented by the adequate planning of the work and the provision of suitable equipment for work at height, together with relevant training and instructions. It is fortunate that the injuries suffered by the employee were not far more serious, or even fatal.”

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.

Scientists of the future got to see at first hand the excellent work that goes on at the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) Science and Research Centre in Buxton.

A-Level students from Meadowhead School in Sheffield spent time at the specialist facility meeting HSE scientists and hearing from them about their careers, career paths and academic route into science.

The visit, organised by HSE, encourages students to think about science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) as a future career.

A group of 21 students started the day with a tour of the wider site, looking at the experimental facilities and test rigs and received an overview of the type of projects and science-based work that has been conducted in Buxton over the years.

Smaller groups of students based on their A-level choices then spent time with relevant specialists including engineers, biochemists, fire and explosives specialists, analytical chemists, human factors specialists, toxicologists, noise and vibration specialists, ventilation specialists, and microbiologists.

Professor Andrew Curran, HSE’s Director of Science, said: “We are very proud of all our facilities and our specialist scientists, engineers and analysts at Buxton and this visit allowed students to speak to our inspirational scientists who were able to showcase some of their work first hand.

“We hope we’ve helped broaden the students’ views of hands-on science, technology, engineering, and maths by showing them areas of work they may not have considered before and how rewarding a career in STEM can be.

“Visits like this are really important as they can trigger a ‘wow’ moment for a student which inspires them to take a new direction in their career.”

HSE’s Science and Research Centre is set on a 550-acre site in Buxton, Derbyshire, and accommodates an impressive inventory of laboratory and large-scale testing facilities.

Around 380 scientists, engineers, occupational health and hygiene specialists and support professionals are based at the site. Here they provide the research and evidence that HSE requires to underpin its regulatory activities, protect people and places and make Great Britain one of the safest places in the world to work.

Cerys Evans, careers leader at Meadowhead school and sixth form, added: “Students were keen to find STEM-related work experience, but were struggling to find the right settings within travelling distance, which is where the team at HSE stepped in.

“Students found out about the work carried out at the centre, touring the facilities, hearing from specialists, and finding out more about specific experimental activity linked to biology, chemistry, physics, human factors and engineering.

“Students will then put together a presentation of their experience to be shared with younger students at school. Many thanks to HSE for offering our students this great opportunity to explore STEM careers.”

Notes to editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise.
2. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.

A construction company and its director have been fined after they failed to provide suitable welfare facilities at a construction site in Belsize Park, North London.

East Sussex firm ID8 Design and Build Ltd was in charge of the site on Carlingford Road where the company was carrying out a full refurbishment of a two-storey flat into a converted house, including the erection of front and rear dormers.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspection of the site on 29 November 2021 found the welfare facilities did not comply with the minimum requirements as set out in Schedule 2 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015; the toilet provided was not flushable and was in a room without a door or window coverings. There was no sink, no hot water, no soap and no towels – cold water only was available from a pipe in the room next to the toilet.  No rest area had  been set up by the company either.

ID8 Design and Build Ltd was then issued with an Improvement Notice by HSE requiring the firm to ensure suitable welfare facilities were available at the site. HSE guidance on welfare facilities for constructions sites can be found here: Construction: Welfare – Managing occupational health risks in construction (hse.gov.uk)

However, a second inspection by HSE on 5 January 2022 found no sufficient improvements had been made as required by the Improvement Notice issued.

At Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 15 February 2023:

• Having pleaded guilty on 18 January 2023 to breaching Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974,  ID8 Design and Build Ltd, of Blatchington Road, Hove, East Sussex, was fined £1334 and ordered to pay costs of £1748.
• Having pleaded guilty on 18 January 2023 to breaching Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 by virtue of Section 37(1) of the act, ID8 Design and Build Ltd director Adeel Bhatti, of Blatchington Road, Hove, East Sussex, was fined £416 and ordered to pay costs of £1622.07.

HSE inspector Emma Bitz said: “Providing suitable and sufficient toilets is an absolute duty and there is no exception to them being provided or made available. The reality is that many of the smaller sites we inspect don’t have basic facilities at all.

“Inspectors will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against employers who fail to comply with an Improvement Notice.  Welfare is a fundamental and basic necessity for workers. It is also required by law.”

Notes to Editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.

HSE Guidance on welfare facilities for constructions sites can be found here: Construction: Welfare – Managing occupational health risks in construction (hse.gov.uk)

A farmer has been fined £8k after a teenage worker suffered serious head injuries when a six-tonne dumper he was driving overturned.

The 19-year-old and his friend, who was just 16, had been paid to move material as part of improvement works at Upper Kingswell Farm in the village of Longdown in Exeter.

However, farmer Richard Palfrey had failed to ask either for their age or what experience they had before giving them a short briefing of what he wanted them to do. Soon afterwards, the dumper overturned on a steep incline and although the 19-year-old ended up in intensive care, he managed to make a full recovery.

Yeovil Magistrates’ Court heard about an area of land being excavated and levelled on the farm on 4 August 2019.  The teens had been paid to move the excavated material using a dumper owned by Richard Palfrey, who was in charge of the excavation works at his farm. The young workers had only been on the farm for a few hours before the incident happened.

An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that Richard Palfrey did not ask the two young workers their ages or make any enquiries into their training or experience in operating dumpers. He gave the two young workers a very short briefing on what he wanted them to do but the steep route that he told them to take with the dumpers was inappropriate as it was steeper than the dumper manufactures said the dumpers could work on. The dumper that rolled had a seat belt but the seat was covered with a fertilizer bag meaning that the seatbelt could not be worn.

Richard John Palfrey of Upper Kingswell Farm, Exeter pleaded guilty to breaching  Section 3(1)  of the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.  He was fined £8,000  and ordered to pay costs of £15,324.40.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Simon Jones said: “Farmers should ensure that only property trained and qualified people use work equipment on their farms.

“Farmers should ensure that any equipment that they provide is safe to use.

“In this case Mr Palfrey allowed young and inexperienced workers to operate work equipment that could not be used safely. A dumper should only ever be operated by a trained driver and the seat belt should always be worn.

“These young and untrained workers should never have been allowed to operate the farm dumper.

“Young workers need careful nurturing and damaging them in this way can affect their future development.

“If Mr Palfrey had made the proper checks then this young worker would not have sustained the life threatening head injuries.”

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Guidance about dumpers and the hazards posed by them is available