A housebuilder has received a fine of £116,666 after a history of health and safety failings.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Mullberry Homes Ltd failed to plan, manage, and monitor health and safety work on construction sites across England.
Mullberry Homes Ltd was handed a series of Notification of Contravention (NoC) letters. The letters are official correspondence that outline how firms need to improve and provide advice on doing so. The company also received a significant number of formal Improvement and Prohibition Notices due to unsafe work.
But the firm repeatedly failed to ensure work being done on its sites was safe and without risks to health. Sites investigated by the HSE included Aintree, Liverpool; Middleton, Rochdale; and Thorncliffe Road, Barrow-in-Furness. It found the company failed to reach the required basic legal standards.
The HSE investigation also found that Alistair Wilcock, in his role as managing director at Mullberry Homes, should have ensured measures were taken to comply with each concern raised by HSE and that these measures were maintained.
Sentencing
Mullberry Homes Ltd, of Old Hall Lane, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 13 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. It was fined £116,666 and ordered to pay costs of £8294.40 at Manchester Crown Court on 31 October 2022.
Alistair Wilcock, of Deer Park, Accrington, was served with a formal caution after accepting he was guilty of breaching section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, in relation the company’s failing of regulation 13 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 on the basis of neglect. HSE accepted that responsibility for compliance with the relevant legislation was not limited to Wilcock.
Matt Greenly, HSE inspector, said: “Companies have a duty of care to those they employee. HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards. Mullberry Homes and their director, Mr Wilcock had every opportunity to improve standards and maintain these improvements. But they sadly failed to do so and continued to put workers and contractors at risk.
“Mullberry Homes Ltd, and its previous company name of Paddle Ltd, has a long history of formal enforcement and prosecutions from HSE. It is hoped that this case will serve as a wake-up call for them to ensure their management is robust enough to maintain any and all health and safety improvements they make in the future.”
