Work at Height Regulations Statistics UK: 2026 Facts, Data & Key Insights

The Work at Height Regulations 2005: Two Decades of Enforcement

The Work at Height Regulations 2005 came into force in April 2005, implementing the EU Temporary Work at Height Directive and consolidating earlier UK working at height legislation. They were introduced specifically in response to the persistent toll of falls from height — which were, as they remain today, the leading cause of workplace death in Great Britain.

Twenty years on, the Regulations have shaped UK workplace practice significantly. But they have not solved the problem. Falls from height continue to kill and seriously injure thousands of UK workers every year, and HSE enforcement of the Regulations remains active and vigorous. In 2024/25, the HSE brought 246 prosecutions for health and safety offences — and falls from height cases regularly feature among the most serious. British Airways was fined over £3 million in 2025 specifically for breaches of Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

For the broader falls context see our Falls from Height Statistics UK: The Definitive Guide.

Key Facts & Figures (Overview)

What the Regulations Require

The Work at Height Regulations 2005 apply to all work at height where, if precautions were not in place, a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. There is no minimum height threshold — the Regulations apply whether the fall risk is half a metre or fifty.

The hierarchy of control (Regulation 6) establishes the legal sequence that must be followed:

1. Avoid work at height where it is reasonably practicable to do so — by altering the method of work, using extending tools, or redesigning the task

2. Prevent falls using collective measures — scaffolding, guardrails, working platforms — that protect all workers in an area without requiring individual compliance

3. Mitigate the consequences of falls — personal fall protection (harnesses, energy absorbers, fall arrest systems) — used where prevention measures do not eliminate the risk

This hierarchy is not a choice — employers must work through it in order. An employer who provides only personal fall protection without considering whether collective prevention was reasonably practicable is non-compliant.

Planning, supervision, and competence (Regulation 4) requires:

Equipment requirements (Regulation 7 and Schedule 5) require:

HSE Enforcement: How It Works

The HSE enforces the Work at Height Regulations through a range of mechanisms:

Inspection visits: HSE inspectors visit workplaces — particularly construction sites — to assess compliance. Unannounced visits are common on construction sites; inspectors have powers to enter premises and examine work activities, equipment, and documentation.

Prohibition notices: Where an inspector finds work activities that create an immediate risk of serious personal injury, they can issue a Prohibition Notice requiring the activity to stop immediately. A Prohibition Notice remains in force until the specified measures have been taken. Working in breach of a Prohibition Notice is a criminal offence.

Improvement notices: Where an inspector finds contraventions of the Regulations that do not create immediate risk, they can issue an Improvement Notice requiring specified action within a specified timeframe.

Prosecution: Where serious contraventions are found — particularly those that have resulted in injury or death — the HSE will consider criminal prosecution. Prosecutions are brought in the magistrates' court for less serious cases, and in the Crown Court for more serious matters. The Crown Court has unlimited fine powers.

Notable Prosecution Cases

British Airways (2025): Fined over £3 million plus £20,935 costs for two breaches of Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The prosecution followed two separate incidents in which baggage handlers fell from height while unloading aircraft at Heathrow. The HSE found that gaps between aircraft fuselages and televator platforms created a clear and foreseeable fall risk. The HSE was critical that British Airways had already engaged with the HSE on these hazards prior to the incidents — but failed to implement consistent controls.

Property Facilities Group and Horizon Roofing (2024): Property Facilities Group fined £14,000 and Horizon Roofing fined £3,333 after a roofer suffered multiple fractures in a fall from an unprotected roof edge. Both companies pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1). HSE investigation found failures to adequately plan, supervise, and carry out work safely.

SSF Construction Limited: Fined £48,000 for unsafe working conditions on a flat roof with no edge protection, following prohibition and improvement notices and a fall from the roof in the days before the inspection.

Why Prosecutions Follow Falls from Height

Falls from height prosecutions follow a consistent pattern that HSE investigation regularly confirms:

The consistent HSE finding is that the large majority of falls from height are preventable — and that prosecution follows where basic, well-known, legally-required precautions were not applied.

Written by Working at Height Experts

This guide was produced by the team at Working at Heights Course, a UK provider of RoSPA and CPD-accredited online working at height training. Our RoSPA and CPD-accredited courses cover the full requirements of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 — from the hierarchy of control and risk assessment requirements through to equipment selection, inspection, and supervisor duties. For related data see our Falls from Height Statistics UK: The Definitive Guide, Cost of Falls from Height to UK Businesses, and Construction Falls from Height Statistics UK.

Sources & References