A FAMILY farming business has been fined £12,000 after a worker suffered a fractured skull when he fell through the roof light of a cattle barn.

James Bridge, then 18, fell almost 10ft while he was clearing roof gutters at Shealwalls Farm, which is run by Messrs Finlay McGowan, in Alyth, Perthshire, on August 15, 2012. He had been working with a colleague but was on his own on the roof when he stepped over a PVC light that broke under his weight.

He was taken to hospital with a fractured skull, bleeding inside the skull, and bruising and cuts to his face.

A Health and Safety Executive investigation and found the men had been given no training to work at height or on fragile roof surfaces. They were working unsupervised and had not been issued with instructions.

Messrs Finlay McGowan, of Incheoch Farm, Alyth, were fined £12,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 4 of the Work At Height Regulations 2005.

HSE Inspector Michelle Gillies said: "This was an entirely avoidable incident. The precautions needed to prevent falls from height are basic, inexpensive and easily implemented, such as using crawling boards to spread weight over a large surface and shield fragile roof sheeting or simply by using a mobile working platform.

"Messrs Finlay McGowan should have carried out a risk assessment before work started. This would have identified hazards, as well as measures that would have eliminated or reduced the risks to employees."

On average, seven people are killed each year after falling through a roof or roof light, said the Health and Safety Executive.