A roofing contractor has been prosecuted for carrying out unsafe work at height while removing a chimney in Rochdale.

MW Roofing (NW) Ltd of Bury Road, Bamford, Rochdale pleaded guilty to two breaches, Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It was fined £6,000 with over £2,440 in costs.

Manchester City Magistrates Court heard two employees working for the contractor were removing a chimney on a two-storey house at the site on Bertha Road.


The workers were seen accessing the roof via a cat ladder. While waste material was being removed by buckets carried down the ladder, there were no safety measures in place to prevent people falling off the roof.

The court heard that despite having previously received warnings from the Health and Safety Executive about their unsafe working at height practice, the company still continued to work in a dangerous manner.

HSE Inspector David Argument said: "You cannot ignore the dangers of working at height, it remains the main cause of death and serious injury in the workplace, particularly in the construction industry. Simple measures, such as providing guard rails can prevent death and serious injury."

(LM/MH)