Work was taking place to convert an old bank into offices on London Road in the Cheshire village.

An HSE inspection on 9 October 2020 found a series of health and safety failings, including several areas where workers could have fallen from height, a risk of exposure to hazardous substances and inadequate welfare facilities.

Contractor Daniel Taylor Builder and Architectural Woodworker Limited was served with three Prohibition Notices on unsafe activities and five Improvement Notices requiring the company to take remedial action to comply with the law.

The firm had previously been the subject of enforcement action relating to unsafe work at height at both its construction sites and joinery workshop. The investigation also found company director, David Taylor, was acting as site manager at the London Road site and had failed to ensure the necessary health and safety measures were implemented to protect employees and others, despite the previous HSE interventions.

Daniel Taylor Builder and Architectural Woodworker Limited, of Congleton, Cheshire, pleaded guilty to safety breaches and was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £1,507.71 in costs at South Cheshire Magistrates’ Court last week.

David William Taylor, of Congleton, Cheshire also pleaded guilty and was fined £10 by the district judge and ordered to pay £1,507.71 in costs.

HSE inspector Sinead Martin said: “This type of proactive prosecution will highlight to the construction industry that HSE will not hesitate to prosecute companies for repeated breaches of the law.

“Good management of health and safety on site is crucial to the successful delivery of a construction project and principal contractors have an important role in managing the risks of construction work and ensuring that safety measures are implemented.”