Howard Civil Engineering Ltd has been fined £600K after seven-year-old child dies on construction site
Howard Civil Engineering Ltd of Howard House Limewood Approach Leeds pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 13(4)(b) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 and to breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974 following the death of a seven-year-old-child.
Conley Thompson was found by workers at a construction site for new-build housing at Bank End Road, Worsborough, in South Yorkshire on 27 July 2015, after he went missing from home the morning of 26 July 2015.
Child dies on construction site after becoming trapped in a drainage pipe
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Conley had become trapped in a drainage pipe, which had been fixed into the ground in preparation for the installation of fencing posts, and tragically he had suffocated.
HSE found that there was insufficient fencing in place to prevent unauthorised persons from accessing the construction site, next to an existing housing estate, adjacent to busy pedestrian footpaths and roads, due to poor planning, management and monitoring.
Howard Civil Engineering Ltd fined £600K after child dies on construction site
The company was fined £600K and ordered to pay £42,952.88 in costs at Sheffield Crown Court today.
HSE inspector Paul Yeadon said: “Conley should never have been able to be on that site. He should have been kept out.
“The construction industry should be aware of the dangers of construction sites to members of the public and any other unauthorised persons.
“The dangers to children gaining access to construction sites and treating them like a playground is an ongoing problem which must be addressed at all types of sites no matter what their complexity or size.
“The industry must do all it can to ensure children can’t access construction sites and be exposed to the inherent risks they present to prevent further tragedies like this from occurring.”
