A roofing contractor has been prosecuted after one of his employees was killed when he fell from a flat roof during repair work in Manchester.

Roy Hardaker, who traded as 9 to 5 Roofing, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. He was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for two years and 200 hours of unpaid work.

Manchester Crown Court heard how father of two, Jason Fogarty, was a casual employee of Roy Hardaker. He was working alongside Mr Hardaker on a flat roof replacement project on 22 December 2013.

The roof replacement was complete and the men were installing cladding and flashing around the top of the building to seal the edges of the roof. . Mr. Fogarty was holding the cladding sheets in position from a ladder footed by his colleague, while Hardaker secured the sheets and the flashing from the roof.

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However, as Mr. Fogarty climbed up onto the roof he subsequently fell from the edge and was pronounced dead at the scene. The reason for him climbing to the roof was not discovered.

A joint investigation carried out by Greater Manchester Police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the work was not properly planned in order to ensure it could be carried out safely. As a result, there were no measures in place, such as scaffold edge protection, to prevent falls from the edges of the roof.

HSE inspector Laura Moran said as an experienced roofer, Mr Hardaker had "completely failed in his duties" to properly plan the work and make sure it was carried out in a safe way.

"By failing to have suitable edge protection installed around the building, Mr. Hardaker put himself and his employees at risk, ultimately costing Mr. Fogarty his life," she said.

(LM/MH)