Woodhorn Group, based in Tangmere near Chichester, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
The company was also ordered to pay £6,500 in costs at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on 16 March 2026.
Health and Safety Executive Inspector Stephanie Hickford-Smith said: “This was an entirely preventable incident that has had a significant impact on Mr Pateman’s mobility and quality of life.”
Tangmere site incident
The incident occurred on 16 February 2024 at the company’s green waste recycling site in Tangmere.
Employee Simon Pateman had been attempting to clear a blockage from the fan housing of a Komtech compost screening machine.
The machine, which was suspended at height inside a large barn, did not have sufficient measures in place to prevent falls.
As Pateman climbed onto the equipment, he slipped and became trapped, with his left leg caught between the machine and its frame.
Due to the momentum and absence of guardrails around the fan housing, he fell backwards onto the gantry, striking his head on a handrail while his leg remained trapped.
He sustained a broken leg, requiring surgery to insert a metal plate and screws.
Failure to assess risks
An investigation by HSE found that Woodhorn Group had failed to properly assess the risks associated with cleaning the machinery, including the risk of falls from height due to unguarded edges.
The company’s standard operating procedure did not provide adequate instructions for safely cleaning or unblocking the fan housing.
Investigators also identified failures to prevent access to dangerous parts of the machine, with an interlocked gate not effectively restricting entry during maintenance of the ‘stars’ – rotating discs used to break down compost.
Hickford-Smith added: “The measures implemented by Woodhorn Group after HSE’s intervention, including new guarded working platforms around the fan housing and over the ‘stars’, demonstrate what was reasonably practicable and should have been in place all along.”
The prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Gemma Zakrzewski and paralegal officer Hannah Snelling.
