Joinery fined £20k following injury

E&F Joinery has been fined £20,000 after a worker fell 3m from a tower scaffold tower and suffered serious head injuries.

The Hailsham-based company, which specialises in shopfitting, was also instructed to pay £11,895 costs after pleading guilty at the Old Bailey to three breaches of the Work at Height Regulations.

The incident happened on September 15 2006 during the fitout of a shop as part of the construction of Enfield Shopping Centre. The injured person was working from a mobile tower scaffold while fitting ductwork for a shop when he fell.

An inspection by the Health and Safety Executive showed that while the worker was not working directly for E&F Joinery, the company was supervising the work. HSE inspectors found the scaffold did not have correct edge protection and had not been inspected.

“This case graphically illustrates that work should be planned, and that scaffolding should be checked to have the adequate edge protection,” said HSE inspector Helen Donnelly.