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Posted on 10 September 2024

Building Control Applications – Latest Information

The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) and the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) have met to discuss industry concerns in relation to building control applications. Proactive dialogue will continue over the forthcoming weeks to address priority areas and maximise communication to the industry. Following the initial meeting, the BSR have stated that: “We recognise the challenges and issues that recent delays to building control application approvals are causing industry. We want to...

Posted on 10 September 2024

CSCS Cards Expiration

All Industry Accreditation (IA) cards issued from 1st January 2020 will expire on 31st December 2024 and cannot be replaced using IA. This is to meet the Construction Leadership Council’s recommendations, which state that all construction industry card schemes must operate with nationally recognised qualifications in place for all occupations. The tailored guidance below is designed to help cardholders replace their IA cards, depending on their occupations and qualifications, while...

Posted on 16 July 2024

Companies fined after 16-year-old worker exposed to asbestos

Two companies have been fined after a teenage worker was exposed to asbestos. The 16-year-old had been working for P Turnbull Joinery and Building Services Ltd on an outbuilding of a domestic property after the firm had been hired by Alt Berg Holding Limited to refurbish the property in Richmond, North Yorkshire. He had been breaking up cement sheets taken from the roof of the property and putting them into...

Posted on 16 July 2024

CSCS Cards – The Benefits of the Digital Card

Did you know that when you have successfully applied for a CSCS card you also get a free digital card via the ‘my CSCS App’? The benefits to using a digital card are: Digital cards are available as soon as an application is approved. They can then be used immediately on site before the plastic card arrives in the post. A digital CSCS card is the same as a plastic...

Posted on 18 June 2024

The dangers of ‘DIY towers’

Access towers are widely available from hire centres, stores and online marketplaces. Every day, thousands of them are used in workplaces and homes by people who need to work at height. PASMA strives for a world where, when assembled and used correctly, every one of those towers is safe. Unfortunately, despite existing legislation and regulations making clear that all products on the market must be safe and existing design standards...

Posted on 18 June 2024

IPAF Safety Campaign 2024 – Crushing Can Kill

In March, IPAF launched this year’s global safety campaign, titled ‘Crushing Can Kill!’. The campaign aims to raise awareness and reduce entrapment and crushing incidents involving Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs), which have resulted in numerous fatalities and injuries over the past decade. The campaign emphasises the importance of training, proper planning, and adherence to safety protocols when using MEWPs in the platform and using MEWPs in pedestrian control mode....

Posted on 7 May 2024

Company and director fined after workers exposed to asbestos

A company and its director have been sentenced after workers were exposed to asbestos and its potential harmful effects. Inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) visited Eye Track Limited’s site in Stretford, Manchester, and found an uncontrolled spread of asbestos containing material. HSE has recently updated its webpages on asbestos safety and in 2023 launched an awareness campaign, Asbestos and You, which provides tradespeople with information about how...

Posted on 7 May 2024

Housing company fined more than £500,000 after worker suffers burns

A housing company based in Kent has been fined £528,000 after an employee repairing a fence post inadvertently struck an underground cable, suffering burns to his face. The MHS Homes employee and a colleague had been tasked by the company to repair three fence posts in a back garden of a tenant on 10 January 2023. They had already repaired two of the posts and started on a third, when...