January 2, 2004—Roofing industry experts have been examining Health and safety Executive (HSE) prosecutions data to investigate falls from heights associated with roofing.
The committee of experts found that most such falls are the result of fragile roofs, fragile rooflights and unguarded edges. It also found that a significant proportion of the prosecutions were concerned with untrained roofers who either ignored or lacked training in matters of safety, and were working to inadequate method statements and risk assessments.
The committee met as a part of a BRE-led Partners in Innovation project, partly funded by DTI, to look at design decisions that could have contributed to the underlying causes of accidents. The main findings of the project so far are being published in a BRE Information Paper, “Designing Roofs with Safety in Mind,” which will be available early in 2004.
The findings of the next stage of the project will be published as a Good Practice Guidance for Roofing with Safety in Mind in March 2005. This guidance will be based on reviews of current good practice guidance and a wide range of BRE roof condition surveys.
The project is currently surveying safety issues raised by roofing contractors belonging to the main trade organizations. The survey questionnaire can be found on the project Web site.
The BRE Information Paper, Designing Roofs with Safety in Mind, will be available from the BRE bookshop.
