A Sowerby Bridge construction company has been fined £300,000 after a 24-year-old labourer fell through an unprotected stairwell opening onto concrete.
A Calderdale house builder has been fined £300,000 after a young father suffered serious spinal injuries when he fell through an unprotected stairwell opening at a construction site.
Joseph Tuck, 24, was in only his second week working as a temporary labourer for a scaffolding company when the incident happened in January 2024.
He was working at a development of four new homes being constructed by Hillbeck Homes (Sowerby Bridge) Ltd when he stepped backwards and fell one storey through an opening intended for a staircase, landing on concrete below.
The stairwell had not been securely covered and its open edges were not protected. Scaffold boards which had previously been placed over the opening had been removed.
Mr Tuck was knocked unconscious in the fall and had to be rescued by West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service and the HART team.
He suffered serious spinal injuries which prevented him from working for several months. He has not returned to a physical job since the incident.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found Hillbeck Homes had failed to put adequate measures in place to prevent falls from height.
HSE Inspector Louise Redgrove described the incident as "wholly avoidable", saying basic measures such as securing scaffold boards or installing edge protection could have prevented the fall.
Hillbeck Homes (Sowerby Bridge) Ltd was found guilty of three charges relating to the planning and supervision of work at height and measures to prevent falls.
At Leeds Magistrates' Court on 16 September, the company was fined £300,000 and ordered to pay £9,284.05 in costs.
The HSE says falls from height remain one of the leading causes of death in the construction industry, accounting for around a quarter of fatal injuries to workers each year.
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