HSE finds Cheshire rife with safety breaches

More than one-third of the construction sites visited during recent spot-checks in north Cheshire by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) were issued with enforcement notices.

Inspectors from the HSE's Merseyside and Cheshire group spent a day making unannounced visits to sites between Mere and Macclesfield, where new homes were being constructed or older ones refurbished.

The visits were carried out to give advice and help contractors work safely, but significant breaches of health and safety were found that the HSE said were capable of causing illness, injury or death.

A total of 14 sites were visited, with five prohibition notices served, requiring work to stop immediately. Ten enforcement notices were also issued, three of them on a single site.

The initiative was carried out on 9 December as part of a rolling inspection programme targeting poor performance sectors in the construction industry.

HSE inspector Catherine Willars said: “Some site managers had reasonable health and safety awareness and were managing jobs well in difficult circumstances, but others were struggling.

“Persons in charge of construction activities need training and the competence to do so. Training courses are readily available to help site managers and foremen to gain the necessary competence.”

During an earlier region-wide initiative, carried out in February, 187 inspections were conducted across the North-west, with enforcement action taken in 103 cases.