Leeds Crown Court heard during the period he was claiming disability allowances Adam Routh did work for 12 different employers.
He began claiming income support legitimately in October 2002 and received incapacity and disability living allowance from the following year after reporting he was suffering from epilepsy, depression and osteo-arthritis.
But it was made clear to him should his situation improve and he could work he should declare that, Diana Maudslay prosecuting told the court yesterday.
He notified authorities of a change of address in 2009 but otherwise continued to claim as before.
When he was questioned in 2009 about his dishonesty he said he never did physical work himself in the scaffolding jobs but acted as a supervisor telling others what to do.
He said he held a health and safety certificate which meant he could oversee sites and train others. He also said to be able to go out to work he had to dose himself on morphine and methadone to which he was addicted.
Lyndsey Lobley for Routh said he was an experienced scaffolder before his health problems and was approached to act as a kind of foreman on one job.
He had intended to tell the authorities but the contract ended before he did so and in others he had to leave when it appeared physical work was needed.
Routh, 46 of Garton Terrace, Leeds was jailed for 18 months after he admitted four offences of benefit fraud.
Sentencing him, Judge Alastair McCallum said “You effectively were stealing from the community when you were in well paid employment. Many people in this country would have been delighted to be earning the sort of figures you were.”
Via: Yorkshire Post U.K. Edition
A Hastings scaffolder has today been fined for endangering himself and others after working on a four-storey scaffold with no harness.
Hastings Magistrates’ Court heard Gareth Roser was spotted by a passing Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspector working without a harness at the building in East Parade, Hastings, on 14 October 2010.
The court was told when the inspector initially saw Mr Roser, who was contracting for Battle-based Giant Scaffolding Ltd, he was approximately eight metres in the air, balancing on scaffolding tubes. However, it emerged that harnesses were available for the workers to use in their van.
Well-established industry guidance requires scaffolders to wear and use a fall arrest harness when more than four metres above ground without a safe platform to stand on and edge protection in place.
Mr Roser, a self-employed scaffolder from St Mary’s Terrace, Hastings, was fined £750 and ordered to pay £643 in costs after admitting a breach of Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
The court was also told that Giant Scaffolding had repeatedly failed to reply to written questions put to them by the inspector despite a number of warnings.
Giant Scaffolding Ltd, of Ringletts Farm, Whatlington Road, Battle, pleaded guilty to a breach of Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and a breach of Section 20(2)(j) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It was fined at total of £15,000 with costs of £5,000.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector, Melvyn Stancliffe, said:
“The simple measure of wearing a harness can save scaffolders from death or serious injury. A basic common sense approach to work is all that’s needed to prevent a possible tragedy.
“In many cases, harnesses are available but some workmen just cannot be bothered to wear them. They should take a moment to think about the consequences.
“It was reckless for Mr Roser to be working in this way. He was exposing himself and members of the public walking below to unnecessary risk. He was seen working in 2008 in similar circumstances and was warned about his future conduct.
“Giant Scaffolding Ltd has also been warned about the dangerous working practices of those working for it.
“These prosecutions show that HSE will not tolerate poor working practices and will take firm action against individuals and contractors who ignore their health and safety obligations.”
Via: HSE 
Harsco Infrastructure, which is part of the worldwide industrial services and engineered products provider Harsco Corporation, has announced a new contract which adds significantly to its industrial maintenance sector order book. The contract provides scaffolding support to the 2,000 acre Tata Steel plant in Scunthorpe, a major location where Harsco Metals also provides onsite metal recovery and material handling services to Tata’s steelmaking operations.
The contract reinforces Harsco Infrastructure’s increasing global focus on the industrial maintenance and infrastructure sectors. It also demonstrates the company’s growing multi-discipline relationship with the Tata Group, following the announcement of other recent new orders in India.
Harsco’s industrial maintenance expertise was seen as a principal factor in winning the award, as the Company identified key areas in which savings could be made through increased efficiencies and reduced waste. “Our decision to move to a new work-at-height contract provider was not one that was taken lightly,” said Dave Jones, Contracts Manager at Tata Steel in Scunthorpe.
Unlike traditional scaffolding arrangements (in which scaffolding providers normally charge by the hour based on how many scaffolders were provided and over what period) Harsco Infrastructure proposed a solutions-focused approach built around the project requirements. “The development of this solutions-focused approach will be a radical change but one that will save us a lot of money,” adds Dave Jones. “These savings, along with Harsco’s best-in-industry operations standards, give me confidence that benefits across the whole site will be felt quickly.“
Harsco Infrastructure is one of the world’s largest and most complete providers of engineered scaffolding, shoring and forming systems as well as painting and insulating services, for major construction and industrial maintenance projects.
Ivor Harrington, Harsco Executive Vice President and Harsco Infrastructure Group CEO commented, “This order from one of the world’s largest blue chip organisations highlights the progress that we have made in increasing our presence in the industrial and key infrastructure sectors. Our combination of experience and expertise makes us ideally placed to continue this growth and help deliver improved performance for some of the biggest players in this important market.”
The sale is effective immediately.
Altrad is a privately owned French manufacturer, hirer and distributor of scaffolding equipment with annual revenues in 2010 of about €415m (£372m) and subsidiary operations across Europe, Africa, Asia and America. The acquisition of Beaver 84 marks its intention to grow in the UK scaffolding market.
“SIG maintains an active portfolio review process to assess the fit with other parts of the group and SIG’s ability to grow and develop each business going forward,” said strategic development director Andrew Greenaway. “Following this review we believe that Beaver 84 has greater potential for growth within the Altrad Group, who as one of Europe’s largest scaffolding businesses, are better positioned to take Beaver 84 forward in its chosen markets.”
As previously reported on 
The future of the industry’s skills card scheme was thrown into question this week after the CITB revealed it is cutting its ties with the scheme.
CITB-ConstructionSkills – which administers the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), used by over 1.6 million workers – revealed it has put its contract on notice.
The move, prompted by commercial differences, ends an often turbulent 16-year partnership. Sources close to the situation claimed personality clashes and disputes over how income had been divided between between the two bodies had contributed to the schism.
The news has sparked fears that the CSCS card scheme will be damaged by the end of its association with the industry’s government-backed skills council.
CSCS cards are demanded as proof of occupational competence by most major clients and contractors on sites.
James Wates, chairman of CITB, admitted the relationship had been difficult but dismissed any suggestion of a recent falling out.
He said: “It’s been a challenging relationship because it’s been a difficult contract for both sides to work within. But I don’t think there’s been real dissonance.
“The [recent] disagreement was around detailed terms of the contract, which I won’t go into because they’re commercial.”
Mark Farrar, CITB chief executive, said: “CITB continues to fully support the scheme for the duration of our agreed contract.”
The notice period will last five years unless the two parties terminate the contract earlier by mutual agreement.
The CSCS indicated it will consult on how best to administer the scheme.
The falling out between two bodies has provoked dismay from the industry.
One source close to the CSCS said: “You’ve got to ask questions when two boards that are drawn from the same organisations can’t agree.”