How Employers Should Prevent Falls From Height in the Workplace

Key Takeaways

• Start with written risk assessments for every task involving working at height, and review them after any incident, near miss or change in site conditions.
• Follow the work at height regulations hierarchy: avoid working at height, prevent falls with collective protection, then reduce harm with fall arrest as a last resort.
• Use the right equipment, such as scaffolds, work platforms, mobile elevated work platforms and podium steps, rather than unsafe or prolonged ladder use.
• Provide suitable personal protective equipment, including safety harnesses, and ensure workers receive appropriate training and rescue training.
• If a fall from height has already happened, injured workers may be able to bring a no win, no fee personal injury claim with Thompson & Co Solicitors.

Introduction: Why Preventing Falls From Height Matters

Falls from height remain the most common cause of workplace fatalities in the UK construction and maintenance sectors, highlighting the critical need for thorough risk assessments to identify and mitigate these hazards. Recent fatal injury data also shows that falls from height are still a leading cause of workplace deaths, excluding work related illnesses.

This article explains how employers should prevent falls from height in the workplace preventing falls from height at work through better planning, safer equipment, scaffolding, harnesses and alternatives to height work. At Thompson & Co Solicitors, we regularly act for employees injured after unsafe ladders, poor scaffolding, missing edge protection and inadequate fall protection.

UK Law on Working at Height: Employer Duties

Employers, the self-employed and anyone controlling a workplace must manage height risk under health and safety regulations. Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, employers have a legal duty to ensure the safety of their employees by providing a safe working environment, which includes preventing falls from height.

The Work at Height Regulations 2005

The work at height regulations apply wherever a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. In simple terms, working at height means work in any place where, without safety precautions, someone could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. There is no “safe minimum height”.

The Work at Height Regulations 2005 require employers to ensure that all work at height is properly planned, supervised, and carried out using suitable work equipment. Core duties include:

• avoiding unnecessary work at height;
• using competent workers and a competent person for planning, inspection and supervision;
• selecting suitable equipment;
• protecting people from falling objects;
• managing fragile surfaces, including every fragile roof;
• ensuring safe systems and rescue procedures are in place.

The Health and Safety Executive can investigate breaches, serve notices and prosecute. Failure to follow safety regulations may also support civil claims by injured workers.

Carrying Out a Robust Risk Assessment for Work at Height

Good risk assessments are the starting point for how employers should prevent falls from height in the workplace preventing falls from height at work. Employers must conduct thorough risk assessments to evaluate all risks involved when working at height, ensuring compliance with health and safety regulations and identifying necessary control measures.

A height-specific assessment should identify:

• tasks involving ladders, scaffolds, roofs, loading bays, mezzanines and machinery platforms;
• fall risks from unprotected edges, openings, fragile surfaces and rooflights;
• weather conditions, lighting, overhead power lines and poor housekeeping;
• who may be harmed, including employees, contractors, agency workers, visitors and the public.

Severity matters as much as likelihood. A short fall onto concrete, machinery or a traffic route can cause serious injuries. Equipment failures or improper usage frequently cause severe injuries in workplace settings.

Risk assessments should be reviewed at least annually, after incidents or near misses, and when staffing, equipment or processes change. Dynamic risk assessments, which integrate work-at-height considerations into all maintenance activities, help teams identify and respond to changing conditions in real time, enhancing workplace safety.

Employers must also identify all fragile surfaces and install permanent warning signs on approaches to such areas to enhance safety.

The Hierarchy of Control: Avoid, Prevent, Minimise

The height regulations 2005 set out a practical hierarchy. Employers should not jump straight to personal protective equipment.

First, avoid working at height. The hierarchy of control measures for working at height prioritizes avoiding work at height wherever possible, such as using extendable tools or performing tasks at ground level. For example, sections can be prefabricated at ground level and lifted into place.

Second, prevent falls. When working at height cannot be avoided, the next step in the hierarchy is to implement collective protection measures, such as guard rails and safety gates, to prevent falls. Employers should implement measures such as edge protection, scaffolding, guardrails, roof parapets and mobile elevated working platforms (MEWPs).

Third, minimise consequences. If collective protection cannot be fully implemented, the hierarchy of control suggests mitigating risks by reducing fall distances and consequences, such as using safety harnesses and nets as a last resort. This may include safety nets, airbags, fall arrest systems and work restraint systems. Work restraint systems prevent workers from reaching unprotected edges using harnesses and lanyards adjusted to a safe length.

These safety measures should be recorded in the risk assessment, not left to common sense on the day.

Using the Right Access Equipment and Scaffolding

Choosing the right equipment is critical to prevent falls. Safe work platforms should prioritize the use of stable scaffolding or Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) instead of traditional ladders.

Scaffolding must be designed, erected, altered and dismantled by competent people, following recognised standards such as NASC guidance. It should include guardrails, mid-rails, toe boards, safe access and a stable base. Scaffolds should be inspected before first use, every seven days, and after events such as alteration or severe weather.

Mobile towers and podium steps are often safer than ladders for repeated or longer tasks. They should be level, secure, correctly assembled and logged through regular inspections or tagging systems.

Mobile elevated work platforms, cherry pickers and MEWPs need trained operators, pre-use checks, firm ground conditions and exclusion zones beneath. Site conditions should always be checked before use.

Ladders are not banned, but they are only suitable for light, short duration work. They must be tied or stabilised, set at the correct angle, inspected before use and never treated as a long-term working platform.

Personal Protective Equipment and Fall Arrest Systems

PPE does not usually stop a fall happening. It reduces injury when used correctly as part of wider height safety planning.

Personal protective equipment for work at height may include full-body safety harnesses, energy-absorbing lanyards, work-positioning lanyards, anchor points, helmets with chin straps, non-slip footwear and high-visibility clothing. Personal fall arrest systems (PFAS) include secure anchor devices, full-body harnesses, and lanyards, which minimize injuries when falls occur.

Employers must provide suitable and well-maintained Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to workers operating at height, as mandated by The Personal Protective Equipment at Work (Amendment) Regulations 2022. PPE must be free, suitable for the individual, maintained, stored properly and replaced after shock-loading or significant wear.

Specific rescue plans detailing how to retrieve a suspended worker quickly are necessary to avoid suspension trauma. Emergency rescue procedures should never rely solely on public emergency services, as rapid, life-threatening risks can occur for suspended workers.

Safe Systems of Work and Building a Safety Culture

Equipment alone will not protect workers unless employers build safe working practices around it. A safe system for working at height should include written method statements, permits to work, task sequencing, exclusion zones, housekeeping controls and weather limits.

Training for employees working at height should be tailored to the specific risks presented and must be regularly updated to address any changes in workplace conditions. Employers are required to ensure that all workers who operate at height have received appropriate training and are competent to perform their tasks safely.

Training should include practical instruction on the use of equipment such as ladders, scaffolding, and personal protective equipment to ensure safe working practices at height.

Strong health and safety culture means supervisors lead by example, stop unsafe work and encourage near-miss reporting. Workers should be involved in risk assessments and equipment selection, because realistic safe systems are more likely to become second nature.

Common Employer Failures That Lead to Height Claims

Many workplace accident claims involving falls from height share the same warning signs:

• generic risk assessments that ignore fragile roof lights, skylights or unprotected mezzanines;
• over-reliance on ladders, pallets, vehicles or improvised platforms;
• missing edge protection, toe boards or guardrails;
• poor inspection of scaffolds, harnesses, anchors and other safety equipment;
• contractors allowed onto roofs without checks on competence, PPE or safe systems;
• no rescue procedures or rescue training.

These failures often show that employers knew, or should have known, about the risks but failed to implement measures to protect workers.

What Happens if an Employee is Injured in a Fall From Height?

When prevention fails, the employer should secure the scene, provide first aid, preserve evidence, report under RIDDOR where required and cooperate with any health and safety executive or local authority investigation.

If the accident was caused by negligence, such as no risk assessment, unsafe scaffolding, missing guardrails or unsuitable work equipment, the injured worker may have a personal injury claim. A claim usually involves proving:

• the employer owed a duty of care;
• the employer breached that duty;
• the breach caused the injury.

Compensation may cover pain and suffering, lost earnings, treatment, rehabilitation, care needs and future losses. Employees are also protected by law from being dismissed simply for bringing a legitimate workplace injury claim.

How Thompson & Co Solicitors Can Help After a Fall From Height

Thompson & Co Solicitors is a specialist personal injury law firm based in Sunderland and Newcastle, acting for injured workers across England and Wales.

We handle workplace accident claims involving falls from scaffolding, ladders, roofs, warehouse mezzanines, machinery platforms and other work equipment. Many cases involve breaches of the Work at Height Regulations 2005, unsafe access equipment or a failure to provide workers with suitable fall protection.

We offer no win, no fee funding, subject to the usual terms and conditions. That means you can pursue a claim without paying legal fees upfront and without financial risk if the case does not succeed.

Your case will be handled by a senior solicitor with direct client contact. We aim to secure compensation and, where appropriate, access to rehabilitation.

To speak to Thompson & Co Solicitors, call 0800 731 3982 or 0191 565 6308. Our office is at 9 Green Terrace, Sunderland, and we are available Monday to Friday, 10am–8pm. Remote consultations are available across the North East and the rest of England and Wales.

Frequently Asked Questions About Preventing Falls From Height at Work

Do the Work at Height Regulations 2005 apply to small step ladders or mezzanine floors?

Yes. The regulations apply where someone could fall far enough to be injured, even at relatively low heights. Internal steps, mezzanine edges, loading bays and warehouse platforms can all create a height risk.

How often should scaffolding, harnesses and other fall protection equipment be inspected?

Scaffolds should be inspected before first use, at least every seven days, and after any event likely to affect safety. Harnesses, lanyards and fall arrest equipment should be checked before use and formally inspected in line with manufacturer and HSE guidance.

Are contractors responsible for their own fall protection?

Contractors have duties, but the site controller, host employer or principal contractor still has overarching health and safety duties. You should check contractor competence, method statements, insurance, training and equipment before work starts.

What documents help prove height risk was managed properly?

Keep written risk assessments, method statements, permits to work, training records, rescue plans, inspection logs, equipment maintenance records and incident or near-miss reports.

How long do I have to start a compensation claim after a fall at work?

In most cases, you have three years from the date of the accident or date of knowledge. Exceptions can apply for children and people lacking mental capacity. For specific advice, contact Thompson & Co Solicitors as soon as possible.