NON-COMPLIANCE with health and safety regulations remains a high risk at Clackmannanshire Council, elected members will hear tomorrow (Thursday May 24).

The local authority’s Audit and Finance Committee will debate the organisation’s updated Corporate Risk Log, which details that an incident or statutory breach of regulations not only remains in the red zone, but is slightly more likely than six months ago.

The latest note on the item explained: “Recent evidence suggests that there is a lack of basic maintenance in our buildings to ensure that they meet the legal requirements, meaning there are inherent safety risks of which staff in the buildings are not necessarily aware.

“Recent incidents suggest that there is still a culture of ignoring/deliberately bypassing safety in some parts of the council.”

And the local authority pleading guilty to a breach in court, and being slapped with a fine of £8,000 in April, highlighted that in the Advertiser recently.

An employee lost three toes and was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after a horrific accident back in 2015.

Alloa Sheriff Court heard how a safety mechanism was overridden on the back of a 7.5tonne tipper truck with the council pleading guilty, at the first opportunity, to an offence contravening the Health and Safety at Work Act.

A man, who worked in the road services division, was shovelling out excess waste after climbing onto the back of the lorry at the Tillicoultry Quarry site when his foot slipped into a machine used for breaking up large chunks of hard rock.

A safety feature, which includes a sensor that switches the machine’s auger plate off when a tarpaulin is removed, was overridden by a two pence coin taped over the electric cell.

That meant removing the tarpaulin had no effect – the worker’s two toes were ripped off and the third one had to be amputated in hospital.

The court also heard that low level management knew of the risks staff were taking when using the override and that three other vehicles were subsequently found to have two pence coins taped over their sensors.

In defence, the council’s lawyers said the local authority takes what happened “very seriously”.

Depute chief executive Nikki Birdle also confirmed policies and procedures were reviewed immediately after the incident and the court was told full training was provided to staff within a working week – the council originally turned down tuition from the vehicle’s manufacturer and staff had never been given manuals.

The Corporate Risk Log highlighted that non-compliance has potential “effects on individuals and their families, financial penalties (including HSE intervention fees), criminal proceedings, adverse publicity, increased insurance or damage to council assets.”

An action plan, based on recommendations from claims services provider Gallagher Bassett, is in place alongside governance improvement plans across all services to tackle the issue.