Category: health & safety

Council prosecution sees landlords fined £434k for housing offences – Local Government Lawyer

Posted April 3rd, 2023 in fines, health & safety, houses in multiple occupation, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news by sally

‘Eight landlords – five individuals and three companies – have been fined £434,000 for offences under the Housing Act 2004, including the operation of 14 unlicensed houses in multiple occupation (HMO) and a catalogue of breaches relating to fire safety, tenant information and maintenance of the properties, following a prosecution brought by West Northamptonshire Council.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 3rd April 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Health and safety update – recent legal developments by Amy Taylor – Six Pump Court

Posted March 30th, 2023 in chambers articles, fines, health & safety, news by sally

‘In this Health and Safety Update, Amy Taylor discusses recent health and safety cases, the most expensive health and safety fines of 2022 and the past and future strategy of the HSE.’

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Six Pump Court, 29th March 2023

Source: 6pumpcourt.co.uk

Awaab Ishak: Rochdale housing group dismissed residents – report – BBC News

Posted March 28th, 2023 in children, complaints, health & safety, housing, inquests, news, ombudsmen, repairs by sally

‘A housing association criticised over the death of a toddler treated its residents in “dismissive, inappropriate or unsympathetic ways”, a report says.’

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BBC News, 28th March 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Building safety registration deadline of 1 October 2023 set – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 21st, 2023 in building law, health & safety, news, notification by tracey

‘Building owners or leaseholders with responsibility for repair and maintenance of the building’s structure and external walls will be liable for a criminal offence if they fail to register occupied “higher-risk buildings” in England between 6 April and 1 October 2023.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 20th March 2023

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Family wins settlement in claim over teacher’s asbestos cancer death – The Guardian

Posted March 3rd, 2023 in asbestos, bereavement, cancer, compensation, families, health & safety, news, teachers by sally

‘The family of a teacher who died of cancer due to asbestos exposure at her school has won a settlement, prompting warnings that staff and pupils remain at risk in older buildings.’

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The Guardian, 3rd March 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

Hillsborough families demand more after MoJ proposes disaster support – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 2nd, 2023 in advocacy, bereavement, health & safety, inquests, news, sport, victims by tracey

‘Families of victims of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster say they will not be satisfied until people have access to representation at inquests. Their latest call comes following a pledge from justice secretary Dominic Raab MP to support victims of large-scale disasters through the creation of an Independent Public Advocate (IPA).’

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Law Society's Gazette, 1st March 2023

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government proposes new professional requirements for social housing managers – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 28th, 2023 in examinations, health & safety, housing, landlord & tenant, news, standards by sally

‘The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced yesterday (26 February) that social housing managers must gain professional qualifications under new rules to “protect residents and raise standards in the sector”.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 28th February 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Drax: Legal action against power station owners dropped – BBC News

Posted February 24th, 2023 in causation, employment, health & safety, industrial injuries, news, prosecutions by sally

‘A prosecution against the owners of the UK’s largest power station has been dropped by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), it has been announced.’

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BBC News, 23rd February 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Highways: expecting the unexpected – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 20th, 2023 in health & safety, local government, news, repairs, roads by tracey

‘In the second in a series of articles, Jack Harding focuses on lesser-known case law which may assist in defending claims brought against highways authorities for failing to maintain the highway under section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 and its predecessors.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 17th February 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Emily Lewis: Speedboat skipper cleared of teenager’s manslaughter – BBC News

Posted February 15th, 2023 in accidents, health & safety, homicide, negligence, news by sally

‘A “thrill ride” speedboat skipper who careered into a metal buoy leaving a teenage passenger with fatal injuries has been cleared of manslaughter.’

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BBC News, 14th February 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Building Safety Act 2022: changing the rules on the landlord and tenant relationship, Part 2 – qualifying lease certificates – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted January 31st, 2023 in building law, health & safety, landlord & tenant, leases, news, service charges by tracey

‘In a previous blog, I explored one aspect of the statutory reallocation of risk for the costs of works to remedy building safety issues in the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022). The focus of that blog was the new landlord’s certificate, designed as a tool for the landlord to communicate with leaseholders as to whether it is “responsible” for defects, or whether it meets the “contribution condition” in the BSA 2022. In this blog, I will focus on the second element of this new framework, the “qualifying lease certificate” or “leaseholder certificate”. The relevant provisions of the BSA 2022 came into force on 28 June 2022, and the related regulations have been in force since 21 July 2022.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 25th January 2023

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Gove admits ‘faulty’ guidance partly to blame for Grenfell fire – The Guardian

Posted January 30th, 2023 in accidents, building law, construction industry, fire, government departments, health & safety, housing, inquiries, leases, news by tracey

‘Michael Gove has admitted that “faulty and ambiguous” government guidance was partly responsible for the Grenfell Tower tragedy. The UK housing secretary said lax regulation allowed cladding firms to “put people in danger in order to make a profit”.’

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The Guardian, 29th January 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

New fire safety regulations following Grenfell Tower fire come into force in England – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 26th, 2023 in fire, health & safety, inquiries, news, regulations by sally

‘The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, which implement the majority of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations, came into force yesterday (23 January 2023).’

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Local Government Lawyer, 24th January 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Former Royal Marine seeks £1.5m in damages over hearing loss – BBC News

Posted January 20th, 2023 in armed forces, compensation, damages, employment, health & safety, industrial injuries, negligence, news, noise, personal injuries by tracey

‘A former Royal Marine is seeking more than £1m in damages from the government over “noise-induced hearing loss”.’

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BBC News, 19th January 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Inquiry launched into corruption claims after crowd crush at O2 Academy Brixton – The Independent

Posted January 19th, 2023 in bribery, corruption, health & safety, inquiries, licensed premises, news, security companies by tracey

‘The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is launching an inquiry into corruption allegations made following the crowd crush at the O2 Academy Brixton last month when two people died.’

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The Independent, 18th January 2023

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Government to review damp and mould guidance following death of Awaab Ishak – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 17th, 2023 in children, coroners, health & safety, housing, inquests, news, reports by sally

‘The Government has announced plans to review guidance to landlords on damp and mould, after a coroner asked the government to take action to prevent future deaths.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th January 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Basildon Hospital maternity staff exposed to 30 times legal gas limit – BBC News

Posted January 16th, 2023 in employment, health & safety, hospitals, midwives, news by tracey

‘Staff at a maternity unit were exposed to almost 30 times the legal workplace exposure limit for nitrous oxide, documents have shown. Testing at Basildon Hospital revealed the levels more than 16 months before colleagues were informed.’

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BBC News, 16th January 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Firm fined a further £200,000 over Wolverhampton storm death – BBC News

Posted January 16th, 2023 in accidents, bereavement, fines, health & safety, inquests, news by tracey

‘A company has been fined £200,000 after a woman was killed by a water tank cover falling from a shopping centre.’

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BBC News, 14th January 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

British Airways fined for Rhoose engineer’s brain injury – BBC News

Posted January 13th, 2023 in accidents, airlines, employment, fines, health & safety, industrial injuries, news, personal injuries by tracey

‘The company that maintains British Airways’ planes has been fined £230,000 after an employee suffered a brain injury near Cardiff Airport.’

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BBC News, 12th January 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Newcastle council fined £280,000 after falling tree killed six-year-old – The Guardian

Posted January 11th, 2023 in causing death of children or vulnerable adults, children, fines, health & safety, local government, news, school children, trees by sally

‘A council has been fined £280,000 for oversights that led to a six-year-old girl being crushed to death by a falling tree in her school playground.’

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The Guardian, 10th January 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com