The 24-year-old had been part of a team working for Len Smith & Son Building Contractors Limited carrying out repairs to the roof at East Fleetham Farm in Seahouses on 5 February 2025.

The man stepped on a polycarbonate roof sheet and fell eight feet to the concrete floor below. He suffered two broken vertebrae in his back, as well as having a fractured sternum, that required surgery.

An HSE investigation found that the company had failed to ensure that there were adequate measures in place to protect employees or contractors when working at height. There was no risk assessment or safe system of work for the work activity being undertaken.

Len Smith & Son Building Contractors Limited of Beadnell, Northumberland, pleaded guilty to safety breaches and was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £5,744 in costs by North Tyneside Magistrates Court.

HSE inspector Richard McMullen said: “The outcome of this case could have been much worse, but the man’s injuries were still very serious.

“Falls from height continue to be the leading cause of workplace fatalities in Great Britain, with 31 people losing their lives in the past year.

“The construction industry remains the sector that accounts for the greatest number of workers killed each year.”