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Dangerous working practices widespread at South London building sites, HSE inspections reveal

News from HSE.gov.uk

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned construction site managers in South London to put health and safety at the top of their priority list after visiting 40 sites in Wandsworth, Lambeth, Greenwich, Croydon, Bromley and Southwark in March. Of the sites visited, a quarter revealed problems, including unsafe work at height, which led to enforcement action being taken at 10 of them.

In Wandsworth, of the 16 sites visited, four had enforcement notices served on them, in Lambeth, another four notices were served on the nine sites visited, and in Greenwich, two of the three sites visited had notices served. In the other three boroughs, no notices were served.

HSE carried out the targeted inspections in March as part of its Shattered Lives and Hidden Killer campaigns. HSE inspectors visited projects where refurbishment, repair and maintenance projects were taking place. The main issues being looked at were work at height, good site order, and risks associated with work in properties where asbestos is present.

Andrew Beal, HSE Principal Inspector for Construction in South London, said:

"HSE does not tolerate poor safety standards on construction sites, and where lives are being put at risk we will take the necessary action to protect workers, including closing sites and undertaking prosecutions. Construction sites can be dangerous places in which to work and it is important that health and safety is properly addressed at all times.

"Many of the sites in South London had unacceptable safety standards, and a quarter were subject to enforcement action due to clear examples of dangerous working practices. At a residential block in Stockwell, for example, inspectors served prohibition notices on the site operator, who was putting workers at serious risk of fatal falls from the building." Last year (2007/08), more than half (52%) of the British workers who died on construction sites worked in refurbishment, repair and maintenance, in line with a similar shocking statistic the previous year (2006/07). The HSE inspected more than 1,500 refurbishment sites across Great Britain throughout March, to tackle poor health and safety standards. During the initiative, HSE Inspectors looked at whether:

* Jobs that involve working at height had been identified and properly planned to ensure that appropriate precautions were in place;

* Equipment was correctly installed / assembled, inspected, maintained and used properly;

* Sites were well organised, to avoid trips and falls;

* Walkways and stairs were free from obstructions;

* Work areas were clear of unnecessary materials and waste;

* Risks associated with asbestos removal were managed correctly and carried out in accordance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006;

* The workforce was made aware of risk control measures. More information is available at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/shatteredlives/construction/index.htm and http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/index.htm