HSE blitz in Cheshire leads to enforcement notices on two thirds of sites

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) blitz on construction sites in Cheshire has resulted in enforcement notices being served on two thirds of the sites visited.

Inspectors from the HSE's Merseyside and Cheshire Group spent a day making spot checks on house building sites between Mere and Macclesfield, on Monday 9 December. 

They found "significant breaches of health and safety legislation," according to an HSE statement. "These were matters capable of causing illness, injury or death on site."

Five prohibition notices were issued, requiring work to stop immediately. In total, 14 premises were visited and 10 enforcement notices were issued - three of them on a single site.

The Cheshire inspectors dealt with:

• Workers at risk of falling from unsafe scaffolding, unboarded roof rafters and even into swimming pool excavations that hadn't been protected by fencing;
• Unsafe movement of machinery near excavations and in areas where workers were operating;
• Unsafe use of electrical supplies at mains voltage, particularly in wet and muddy areas of site;
• Basic welfare facilities falling short of the standard required by law - inadequate toilets, soap, hot and cold running water;
• Untidy sites in which waste material wasn't being removed from the working area and was causing 'slip and trip' hazards.

During an earlier blitz in the north west, carried out in February this year, 187 inspections led to enforcement action being taken in 103 cases.