CROSSRAIL contractors are facing criminal prosecution over the death of a construction worker. The Health and Safety Executive said BAM Nuttall, Ferrovial Agroman (UK) and Kier Infrastructure and Overseas, joint contractors for the £15bn project, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in January. Two of the charges relate to the
A two-year development programme set to revitalise the St James Church site in Portobello is set to start early next year after phase one of the Edinburgh project was given the go-ahead. The work will see three family townhouses replace the 1970s’ church hall and car parking area behind the
CROSSRAIL contractors are facing criminal prosecution over the death of a construction worker. The Health and Safety Executive said BAM Nuttall, Ferrovial Agroman (UK) and Kier Infrastructure and Overseas, joint contractors for the £15bn project, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in January. Two of the charges relate to the death of Rene Tkacik – who was killed by falling concrete on March 7, 2014 – while working deep beneath Red Lion Square, Holborn. The HSE’s head of operations, Annette Hall, said: “We have today informed the three contractors that they will each be prosecuted for the death of a worker and injuries sustained by two others, in three separate incidents on the construction project. We have concluded following thorough investigations that there is sufficient evidence to prosecute and it is in the public interest to do so.” The charges are being brought under Health and Safety Act that says an employer must “ensure when reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees”. Shortly after the death of Mr Tkacik the West End Extra revealed “confidential” documents warning Crossrail bosses about “hazardous and unsafe working conditions” in the tunnel. A whistleblower’s memo added that “the warning signs were evident from the start” and listed a series of injuries to Crossrail “shotcrete” workers the year before Mr Tkacik’s death. After the 44-year-old’s inquest, in January 2015, a jury heard that the hugely experienced construction worker was working in a no-go zone when lumps of sprayed concrete fell on him from the top of the tunnel. The contractors are also facing charges over leg injuries sustained by Terrance Hughes, who was crushed by a tipper truck in Bond Street and Paddington on January 16, 2015. Article taken from http://www.westendextra.com/Crossrail-tunnel-death
A two-year development programme set to revitalise the St James Church site in Portobello is set to start early next year after phase one of the Edinburgh project was given the go-ahead. The work will see three family townhouses replace the 1970s’ church hall and car parking area behind the Grade-B listed church on Rosefield Place. The site was acquired in 2015 after the Church of Scotland made the decision to sell two out of their three local churches and associated halls when falling congregations made operating and maintaining them unviable. The Church Congregation Committee chose a bid that promised a small-scale development sympathetic to the existing style and character of the neighbouring houses. The developer, Pete Turner, has partnered local architect Sonia Browse on previous small scale developments in conservation areas and sees sensitive yet distinctive design as a cornerstone of his projects. He said: “From the start we intended this to be a development that enhanced and preserved the style of the area, while being sympathetic to the existing listed church building. The positive feedback we received from consultation with Edinburgh Council, the church committee and residents’ associations throughout the pre-planning phase affirmed our purpose and design objectives, and furthered our confidence that we would achieve planning permission for the site.” The design of the mews houses is inspired by the ‘linked villa’ style typical of the Brighton and Rosefield area. The garage of each property is set back from the street, joining houses together in a similar way to the single-story wings which link the late-Georgian properties in the neighbouring streets. Elements of the design borrow from the Gothic ‘perpendicular style’ of the church itself. Read more at http://www.scottishconstructionnow.com/16430/green-light-for-transformation-of-st-james-church-hall-site-in-portobello/
