School Fined £52,800 after Member of the Public Suffers Fatal Head Injury in Fall

Peterborough Magistrates’ Court heard how on 17 February 2017; a family member visited The Leys & St Faith’s Foundation School in Cambridge to watch a performance being held that evening. The family member was walking towards the hall when she tripped over a small retaining wall and fell to the ground. As a result of the fall she suffered a serious head injury. Six days later she died in hospital.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that The Leys & St Faith’s Foundation School had failed to adequately light the area in which the wall was situated. A pedestrian site safety assessment failed to identify the risk of tripping over the wall and did not consider the lighting in the area or how the possibility of insufficient lighting could affect the safety of pedestrians at night.

The Leys and St Faith’s Foundation School of Fenn Causeway, Trumpington Road, Cambridge pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. They were fined of £52,800 and ordered to pay costs of £10,040.