Robert Jozwiak, 44, of Humberstone, was repairing the roof on the former textile dye house at Evington Valley Road, Leicester on 3 June 2009 when it gave way and he landed on the concrete floor six metres below.

His skull and back were fractured and he died from his injuries later that evening.

He had been instructed to carry out the work by Musa Suleman who was helping to bring the building back into use.

Suleman, of Leicester, was prosecuted for failing to ensure the work he arranged to be carried out was properly planned, supervised or carried out in a safe manner.

He pleaded guilty to safety breaches and was yesterday given a 12 month prison sentence suspended for two years at Leicester Crown Court.

He was also ordered to pay compensation of £13,800 to Jozwiak’s family and full costs of £17,337.

Passing sentence His Honour Judge Simon Hammond said Mr Jozwiak’s death was a terrible tragedy that could have been prevented.

He said there were clear lessons to be learned and urged anyone working on buildings to treat health and safety as their top priority in order to prevent injury or death.

After the hearing HSE inspector Karl Raw said: “The roof was made of corrugated asbestos cement sheets, and the work required careful planning and consideration of the risks involved.

Tragically, Mr Suleman failed to do this and to properly supervise the work which resulted in the needless death of a husband and father.

“Safe routes and protective equipment should have been in position to allow Mr Jozwiak to get to work areas without injury, and measures to prevent or mitigate any falls should have been in place.”