An employee of Anglo Recycling Ltd was injured in unguarded machinery leading to an £8,000 fine for the textile recycling company.

The employee suffered a compound fracture to his arm on 23 March 2016 when it was drawn into unguarded machinery on a carpet recycling line and caught between a conveyor and a roller.

The court heard from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that Anglo Recycling Ltd had failed in its risk assessment and had not provided a guard for the machine’s rear access point, something the employee had pointed out to the company prior to his injury but which had not been addressed.

The Rochdale-based company, which makes recycled fibre felts for the flooring, horticulture, building insulation, automotive and acoustic industries, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and was subsequently handed a fine of £8,000 and ordered to pay £5,500 in costs.

HSE Inspector Sharon Butler described the case as “a stark reminder of the consequences of a failure to adequately guard machinery and implement safe systems of work”.

The HSE produced a sector plan in September last year containing actions to address the serious continuing safety issues in the waste and recycling industry; figures released in 2017 show that it remains one of the most dangerous sectors in which to work in the UK, with on average 5,000 workers injured every year since 2009, as well as the second highest rate of fatal injuries of all sectors over the past five years (14 fatal injuries were reported in 2016/17 alone).

Meanwhile, in a report released earlier this month (16 February), the Environmental Services Association (ESA) reported that its members have reported an 86 per cent reduction in injuries since 2004, citing an apparent wide variation in health and safety standards within the sector.