WORKING AT HEIGHT
response and maintenance section of the industry, where people carry out tasks such as clearing gutters. Often where there is no room to lean the ladder properly, or they haven’t got the proper devices to stop it from slipping, or if they are working alone and there is no one to foot the ladder. These types of activity result in accidents and injury.
The three main sources of falls from height injuries and fatalities are falling through fragile materials such as roof lights, inadequate scaffolding and ladders that, I believe are all accidents that can be easily prevented. Working at Height is clearly the most dangerous activity carried out in the construction sector and everyone can do more
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to ensure that work is properly planned, supervised and carried out by qualified workers who have the required skills for the task in hand. The Working at Height Regulations 2005 require the hierarchy of control to be implemented when planning any work at height. To significantly reduce the dangers of working at height, construction companies should always try to complete as much work as possible from the ground, ensure safe access and egress and importantly, make certain that any equipment used is suitable, stable and strong enough for the job.
The regulations also place a duty on employers to select the right equipment, but ladders are still being used where a tower would
have been better. Typically what happens is a maintenance worker arrives on site with a ladder and even though a tower would be a better solution, the work is undertaken without selecting the correct equipment.
The best way to implement safe working methods is to comply with the Working at Height Regulations. The Regulations state very clearly that all work at height should be properly planned and managed. Contractors need to take the time to properly plan out work methods and equipment needed, before the work is executed, and not let work take place on a reactive basis.
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