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Lessons learned

What went wrong on demolition sites, and what would have stopped it. Free to read, and written so the next engineer does not repeat it.

Published by the Institute · reviewed

What this is

Short, plain accounts of incidents and near misses: the work, what went wrong, and the checks that would have prevented it. Each has a reference you can quote in a method statement or a toolbox talk.

Where they come from

Members of the Institute share them, and every morning the Institute writes up the demolition cases from the Health and Safety Executive’s prosecutions, linked to the original. Nothing names a company, a site or a person.

Share yours

The most useful lessons never reach the HSE: the near miss, the wall that came down early, the survey that missed something. It takes about ten minutes.

How sharing works

Browse by category

All 8Working at height 4Asbestos & hazardous materials 2Structural collapse & stability 1Temporary works 1

Working at height

HSE-2026-001HSE30 Jul 2026Life-changing injury

Poorly planned steel frame dismantling causes life-changing fall

Category
Working at height
Phase
Dismantling

A worker suffered multiple back fractures, a punctured lung and a broken leg while dismantling a steel event structure. The contractor and a director were prosecuted after HSE found the work had not been properly planned or safely carried out.

Contributing factors
  • No adequate method statement
  • Inadequate fall protection
  • Poor sequencing of dismantling
  • Lack of supervision
Read the full account →
HSE-2026-006HSE22 Jul 2026Life-changing injury

Worker fell from tipping bucket used as work platform

Category
Working at height
Phase
Dismantling

A worker was seriously injured falling from a tipping bucket being used to gain height while dismantling pipework. The principal contractor was fined for failing to properly manage contractors and site safety.

Contributing factors
  • Improvised access equipment used
  • Inadequate contractor management
  • No suitable work at height plan
  • Insufficient site supervision
Read the full account →
HSE-2026-003HSE2 Feb 2026Fatality

Fragile garage roof gave way with no fall prevention in place

Category
Working at height
Phase
Structural demolition

A 19-year-old worker died after falling through a fragile garage roof during demolition work where no measures had been taken to prevent or mitigate a fall. The contractor responsible for the work was jailed for 12 months.

Contributing factors
  • No fall prevention or mitigation measures
  • Fragile roof not identified or assessed
  • Inadequate supervision of young worker
  • No pre-task planning for work at height
Read the full account →
HSE-2025-004HSE9 Oct 2025Enforcement

Prohibition notice ignored, exposing workers to fall risk

Category
Working at height
Phase
Structural demolition

A contractor continued unsafe working-at-height and demolition-related activity after the regulator had issued action to stop it, putting workers at risk of serious injury. The matter resulted in a suspended sentence and a requirement to carry out unpaid work.

Contributing factors
  • Prohibition notice ignored
  • Poor safety culture
  • Programme pressure overriding safety
  • Inadequate management oversight
Read the full account →

What a full entry contains

The account

The work as planned, the condition of the structure as found, and the point where the plan and the reality parted. Written by or with the engineer involved, or from the HSE’s published findings.

What to do differently

Three to five concrete things to check or do, so the lesson can go straight into a method statement, a briefing or a toolbox talk.

Share a lesson

  1. Sign in to the members’ area and open Lessons learned.
  2. Write it up in about ten minutes: what happened, and what should be done differently next time. A near miss counts.
  3. The Education Committee reviews it and edits out anything that could identify a client, a site or a person.
  4. It is published anonymously unless you ask to be named and give your consent. You can see where it is at any time.
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