Council Fined After Failures Led to Death

Western Isles Council pled guilty to a charge under the Health and Safety at Work Act following the death of a 69-year-old man at St Brendan’s Care Home in Castlebay. The doors at St Brendan’s Care Home were unprotected and did not have alarm systems in place. The council was fined £80,000 at Lochmaddy Sheriff Court on 6 August 2025.

To ensure these incidents do not occur in your residential care organisation, contact one of our Health & Safety specialists for FREE, same-day advisory on 01455 858 132.

Reason for prosecution

Consequences for your care sector business

Croner’s risk prevention process

Reach out to an expert

Case background

In March 2024, Allan MacLeod, a 69-year-old pensioner with dementia, wandered unaccompanied out of his room at St Brendan’s Care Home in Castlebay.

He was located four hours later with facial injuries consistent with a serious fall; MacLeod was rushed to hospital and later succumbed to his injuries.

The Western Isles Council, in-charge of managing St. Brendan’s, pled guilty to contravening Sections 31 and 33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

As a result, the Council was fined £80,000 in damages to be paid to the MacLeod family.

Reason for prosecution

A Health and Safety Executive-led investigation revealed that:

• In 2023, risk assessments had been undertaken by the care home, uncovering that MacLeod exhibited a proclivity for removing his electronic tag, which was used to track his movements.
• MacLeod had a history of trying to leave the care home(s) in which he resided.

Yet, despite this evidence, the Western Isles Council failed to implement appropriate measures to prevent an unaccompanied, unknown departure that ultimately led to MacLeod’s death.

Consequences for your care sector business

If you run a care or residential care sector business, where the care of either Children or Young People (CYP) or the elderly is under your protection, then an incident like this could irrevocably damage both your organisation and its workers, not to mention the potential for loss of life that an incident like this risks.

From a business perspective, the consequences of an incident like this are several: permanent reputational damage, patient flight, prosecution in a criminal court, and crippling financial penalties to name a few.

So, how do you ensure something like this never happens to your business and the individuals it cares for?

Let’s cover how Croner’s expert team would have handled this situation below:

Croner’s risk prevention process

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, ‘(1) It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his/her employees.’ If your business was a Croner partner, our team of specialists would immediately go to work on understanding all the risks that could put you at risk of breaching this law.

Step one would be to conduct a comprehensive on-site health and safety audit.

This assessment would evaluate:

• Entrances and exits, as well as the risks associated with each.
• Relevant risk assessments and Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs).
• Whether the implementation of risk assessment procedures is functioning effectively—specifically, when issues are identified, are these issues successfully mitigated? If not, why not?
• If incident reporting systems are robust. It is essential to identify any gaps within the system, ensuring that incident data is centralised and easily accessible.

These are just a few of the aspects that our risk identification procedure would cover.

Strategy implementation

In the implementation phase, we would address the identified risks by developing targeted solutions based on our H&S specialists’ findings.

For example:

• Entrances and exits: Enhance security measures by installing tamper-proof locks and ensuring access credentials are regularly updated and monitored.
• Incident Reporting Systems (IRSs): Strengthen IRSs by centralising data and ensuring it is easily accessible, allowing for timely analysis and continuous improvement of safety measures.

These are just a few of the strategies and solutions Croner H&S specialists would implement.

Legal disclaimer

The information provided above is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It is imperative that you consult with a qualified professional or legal advisor to ensure that your organisation adheres to all relevant laws and best practices. Always prioritise the safety and well-being of those in your care.

Reach out to an expert

“This was a tragic and preventable death. The council should have made sure the home had stronger measures in place with Mr MacLeod’s risks already known and assessed.” – HSE inspector, Ashley Fallis

If you are a care or residential care sector business and you want to ensure your organisation is risk free, give one of our Health & Safety specialists a call today for FREE, same-day advisory.

Call 01455 858 132.