07/10/2015
An ice rink in East Staffordshire was fined £12,000 for failing to look after the welfare of its employees.
The company running the ice rink, PI (Uttoxeter) Ltd pleaded guilty to breaches of Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 after a prosecution was brought as a result of an accident which occurred in March 2014, where an employee sustained an industrial injury whilst operating a piece of machinery to resurface the ice.
Lack of Training Cited as Reason for the Injury
The District Judge who heard the case was of the view that the accident “could have been worse”. He said that it was not good enough to just have a Health and Safety Policy and Risk Assessments in place; they needed to be communicated and implemented and not just 'put in a drawer'.
Following the decision by the Magistrates Court, a council spokesman stated: "Employees of the company had not been suitably trained and there were inadequate safe systems of work in place. In addition, equipment was not being properly maintained.
"As a result of this investigation, a prohibition notice was served on the machinery, requiring it to remain out of use until repairs had been undertaken. An improvement notice was also served, requiring that employees receive adequate training in the safe use of the machinery."
This case illustrates the importance of businesses not only drafting health and safety policies, but ensuring that management and staff are aware of them, are trained adequately, and the principles contained in the policies become part of the organisation’s culture.
To find out more about health and safety law, please phone our London office on 0207 993 6960.