WC Corfield fined £20,000 for fall

WC Corfield & Son (Telford) has been fined £20,000 at Telford Magistrates Court following an accident three years ago in which four employees fell from height.

The incident happened on 28 February 2003 at the Leegomery Community Centre. Scaffolding the workers had erected in a partly built lift shaft collapsed, resulting in the four falling 6.7m. They were handling a concrete lintel weighing 200kg on the scaffolding when it collapsed.

The Borough of Telford and Wrekin was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £11,252 for not ensuring it had prepared, and provided the contractor with, an adequate health and safety plan before work started.

HSE inspector David Brassington said: "In this case there were failures to identify significant hazards and appropriate control measures prior to the start of the construction phase and significant failures by the principal contractor to manage risks during the construction phase."