HSE to inspect 1,000 workplaces to ensure safety standards

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has announced plans to inspect 1,000 refurbishment sites across Britain to ensure the appropriate safety standards are in place.

According to the body good site order and working at height will be the main focus of the inspections.

Stephen Williams, HSE's chief inspector of construction, said: "It is totally unacceptable that so many lives have been lost and continue to be put at risk on construction sites, particularly within the refurbishment sector."

He added that the HSE are committed to rooting out the "rogue elements" that continue to put workers' health and safety at risk.

Last summer inspections resulted in an average of one in three sites being issued with enforcement notices.

Notices were issued on 42 occasions for poor practice relating to working at height and failing to maintain sites in good order while work was stopped immediately on 26 sites.

Findings from the HSE revealed that 77 workers died in the construction industry in the UK.

Over half of these (39 per cent), were in the refurbishment sector where the number of deaths rose by 61 per cent.

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