Campaign highlights impact of slips, trips and falls in the workplace

The Health and Safety Executive has launched a new campaign to reduce the number of slips and falls in the workplace.

Such incidents killed 40 employees in 2009 and seriously injured 15,000, while 30,000 had to take more than three days off work to recover.

The Shattered Lives campaign aims to highlight the impact of slips, trips and falls in the workplace. It is especially targeting sectors including health and social care, education and construction, which see a high number of such incidents.

People can log on to the Shattered Lives website for practical tips and guidance on how to avoid such incidents.

HSE statistics show that slips, trips and falls are the most common cause of major workplace injury in Britain, costing the country around £800 million each year.

Most deaths in the workplace are caused by falling from height, the figures show.

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David Urpeth from law firm Irwin Mitchell said: “I welcome this campaign aimed at reducing the number of people injured or killed in slips, trips and falls following a work accident.

“An industrial accident caused by a slip, trip or a fall, can happen in many different ways across many different industrial sectors.

“I hope this campaign raises awareness and this leads to fewer people having their lives shattered by injuries sustained following an accident at work.”