THE death of a man on a Bolton building site could easily have been prevented, health and safety chiefs said last night.

The comment came as a building firm was ordered to pay £15,000 after one of its workers fell to his death.

Ian Smith, aged 64, fell five metres from an unstable ladder as he worked on a building site in Dale Gardens, Easedale Road, Heaton, in December, 2007.

DC Kennedy Homes Ltd was yesterday fined £7,500 by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and told to pay a further £7,500 in costs.

Mr Smith was working on a project to build six new semi-detached houses at the time of the incident, Manchester Crown Court heard yesterday.

The HSE’s investigation found that the company had allowed work to be carried out on the first and second floors of one house, before the stairs had been fitted.

The ladder, which had been used to reach the second floor, had not been secured and did not have rubber feet.

DC Kennedy Homes, of Ladybridge Lane, Heaton, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 by failing to ensure Mr Smith’s safety.

Polly Tomlinson, HSE Principal Inspector for Greater Manchester, said: “This was a tragic incident that could easily have been prevented if DC Kennedy Homes had put more thought into the safety of its employees.

“The ladder Ian Smith used was dangerous as the rubber feet were missing and it wasn’t tied to the wall to stop it slipping.”

Ms Tomlinson said Mr Smith should never have been expected to use the ladder and added that the work had not been planned properly.

She said other employees were also put in danger adding: “I hope this case will act as a warning to other house building companies to improve their safety standards, to prevent more people dying at work in the future.”

No one from DC Kennedy Homes was available for comment.

steven.thompson@ theboltonnews.co.uk