UK riots heighten concern on lone worker safety
Organisations call for a focus on keeping staff safe as UK riots raise personal safety concerns.
The British Retail Consortium has expressed concern for its members following recent rioting across the UK.
Much of the disorder took place on high streets with shops being targeted for looting.
The rioting began after the murder of three young girls in Southport on 29 July.
To date, over 900 people have been arrested in relation to violent disorder and antisocial behaviour.
Read more on the SHP website.
East Sussex body fined as dog walkers struck by tree
A body that manages a major forest in East Sussex has been fined after a husband and wife were struck by a tree, with the latter suffering a traumatic brain injury.
Caroline Leafe, 70, was walking along a deer track in Ashdown Forest with her husband, Kenneth, and their dog, Monty, when the pair were hit by a silver birch tree that was being felled on 25 January 2023.
The Conservators of Ashdown Forest, the body that manages Ashdown Forest, had identified that the 12-metre tree was rotting and needed to be cut down.
The tree was located in the corner of Broadstone Car Park on Colemans Hatch Road in Upper Hartfield, East Sussex and surrounded by public footpaths, including the main pathway to the visitor centre.
The tree began to fall after a forest ranger made a sink cut with a chainsaw. As it was falling, the ranger noticed Mr and Mrs Leafe walking on the nearby deer track and attempted to warn them but it was too late.
Mrs Leafe suffered a traumatic brain injury, a fractured collar bone, several fractured ribs and a shoulder dislocation. She spent considerable time in hospital following the incident and continues to undergo physical and cognitive therapy several months later. She also had to surrender her driving licence.
For more on the incident, visit the HSE website.
Lee Valley velodrome to install barrier after 2022 crash
A perspex barrier will be fitted around the Lee Valley VeloPark velodrome following a horrifying crash at the venue during the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
A high-speed collision involving several riders resulted in England’s Matt Walls being catapulted over the side of the track and into the crowd with his bike, with cyclists and spectators sustaining injuries.
The incident led to calls from Sir Chris Hoy and Dame Laura Kenny for improvements to velodrome safety.
The London venue will install a 1.4 metre-high barrier, costing £250,000, around the track later this month.
In a statement, Lee Valley said the barrier is “a UK first for an existing velodrome and is believed to be only the third of its kind in the world to be retrofitted”.
It added that cycling’s world governing body, the UCI, was consulted on the design of the barrier, which it says will improve rider and spectator safety as well as providing better visibility through the transparent screen for fans sitting at lower levels.
Learn more on the BBC website.
Health and safety investment can be “game-changer”, says IOSH
The Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), has called on UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and his government to invest further in legislation which prevents workers from being harmed.
Such a move would reduce workplace accidents and work-related ill health and provide a “game-changing prize” of improved performance and productivity which will support economic growth.
In a letter to Mr Starmer, IOSH highlights the UK’s Health and Safety at Work Act, which was published 50 years ago, and says there is an opportunity to build on the foundations it created.
It calls for an improved focus on mental health while adding it is encouraged by the government’s forthcoming Employment Rights Bill.
The letter is co-signed by IOSH Chief Executive Vanessa Harwood-Whitcher and Board of Trustees Chair Professor Peter Bonfield OBE.
Read more about the letter on the SHP website.
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