City council ordered to pay £71k+ after school caretaker dies
Brighton and Hove City Council has been ordered to pay more than £71,000 in a fine and costs after a school caretaker died following a fall from a ladder.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the council, which employs staff at Blatchington Mill School, had failed to ensure that the cleaning of the school’s bike shed was “properly planned, appropriately supervised, and carried out using a safe work method”.
The council pleaded guilty to a breach of Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on 28 February 2023. It was fined £66,666 and ordered to pay £5,000 in costs.
The caretaker, who worked at a community school in Hove, suffered a fatal head injury when he fell from the ladder in 2018.
Mr Mobsby, 71, had been cleaning the roof of a bike shed at the school on Nevill Avenue, Hove, using a standard-length broom and a telescopic surface cleaner before falling approximately 2.5 metres onto the tarmacked surface below, HSE reported.
HSE inspector Natalie Pomfret said: “Falls from height remain one of the most common causes of work-related fatalities in this country and the risks associated with working at height are well-known. In this case, this tragic incident led to a man’s avoidable death. This death could have been prevented if his employer had acted to plan and supervise the work activity and ensured a safe method of work was in place.”
Deb Austin, Brighton & Hove City Council’s Executive Director, Families Children & Learning, said: “Since Mr Mobsby’s untimely death, the council has amended its advice and training to all schools in the city to ensure a terrible tragedy like this doesn’t happen again.
“We are working with our family of schools so relevant staff are competent in working at height.”
Austin said this includes ensuring:
- An updated and revised health and safety policy for Work at Heights has been adopted by every school setting in the city
- All settings have identified and risk-assessed work at height activities, including assessing whether work at height can be avoided
- All school staff in the city that work at height have undertaken appropriate work at height training and there is competent staff to coordinate the work
She added: "The council has also sent more than 12 separate pieces of communication to school settings with reminders and updated Work at Heights guidance and training.”
Lottie Winson
