LANCASHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM — AJ Riley Landscapes and Building Limited has been fined £20,000 following a serious fall through a barn roof, according to an HSE announcement dated 5 November 2026. The release reports a recent court outcome; the accident occurred in February 2025.
Skylight replacement ended in a ten-metre fall
HSE says employee Josh Huddleston, 47, was replacing a damaged skylight on 24 February 2025 when he fell approximately ten metres. He sustained fractures involving his ribs, vertebrae and pelvis.
The investigation identified inadequate planning and fall-prevention measures. It also found insufficient training in the controls specified by the company’s risk assessment.
Guilty plea and court-imposed penalty
The Caton-based company admitted breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Warrington Magistrates’ Court imposed the fine on 3 November 2026 and ordered £4,955 in costs. The amounts are a court sentence, rather than proposed enforcement penalties.
HSE Blog Analysis
This case raises a practical question for contractors: can the crew explain and demonstrate the planned protection before access begins? Identifying a fragile surface in a document does not establish that the chosen access method works for the skylight being replaced. A useful pre-start review connects the job, equipment and competence of the people doing it.
Supervisors can test the plan by asking how workers reach the task, what prevents contact with fragile areas and how the method changes if the anticipated access is unavailable. These are editorial applications, not additional findings about this site. Our guides to assessing task-specific risks and checking written controls against actual work provide related context.
Sources and verification
Checked HSE’s original release and Roofing Today: two organisations, below the preferred five to six. The trade report follows the regulator’s account and is not a separate investigation. The original announcement is dated 5 November; the older accident is not presented as fresh. The featured scene is conceptual. Incident imagery remains with the original publishers; no third-party photograph is reproduced.
Source
Health and Safety Executivepress.hse.gov.uk
