A building contractor has received a £600,000 fine, while its director must complete 100 hours of unpaid work and pay £4,200 after failing to manage the risk of fire at a site.
In January 2018 the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated health and safety failings by S&S Quality Building Contractors Ltd at a construction site at Regent House, Brentwood, Essex. Its inspection came in response to concerns that people were sleeping on site.
The HSE, assisted by Essex Fire & Rescue Service, identified failings in fire management at the site. These failings created risks to workers and members of the public visiting show flats outside of business hours.
‘Poorly managed site’
The environment at Regent House was poorly managed and the construction work was being carried out in an unsafe manner which could have resulted in a fire.
S&S Quality Building Contractors had previously been subject to HSE interventions after fire risks had been identified at a number of sites over several years. Evidence gathered during the HSE investigation indicated that company director Shlomo Pines regularly attended the Regent House site and failed to implement improvements from previous HSE interventions.
S&S Quality Building Contractors Ltd of Hawthorn Business Park, Granville Road, London, pleaded guilty to breaching 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £600,000 and ordered to pay costs of £36,894 at Basildon Crown Court on 25 October 2022.
Shlomo Pines, of St Johns Road, Golders Green, London, pleaded guilty to contravening Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. He received a community order to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and was fined £4,200.
HSE inspector Prentiss Clarke-Jones said: “S&S Quality Building Contractors Ltd completely ignored the importance of fire safety measures on a construction site led by a director who wilfully chose to ignore the risks, despite evidence he knew how to make things safe. This unsurprisingly resulted in a site where risks were also ignored by his workers.
“Follow the guidance, get competent advice and take responsibility that the law requires at the very least, or someone may get hurt, which thankfully did not eventuate here.”
