The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) recently published its latest annual work-related fatal injury statistics for Great Britain.
As always, it shows some interesting figures. The data is from April 2024 to March 2025, where 124 workers were killed in work-related accidents in Great Britain in 2024/25, a decrease of 14 from the previous 12-month period.
These figures highlight the continuing need for businesses to take action to prevent occupational ill-health. Health and Safety has come a long way in the last 50 years with the figures being 223 twenty years ago (2004/05) and 495 in 1981.
In the recent years prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the number of annual fatalities had been broadly flat. In 2022/23 the number of deaths each year remain in line with pre-pandemic levels.
The industries with the highest number of deaths were construction (35) and agriculture, forestry and fishing (23). The most common cause of fatal injuries continues to be falls from a height (35), accounting for over a quarter of worker deaths in 2024/25. There were, however, two industries who’s fatalities decreased; the manufacturing sector and waste and recycling sector.
A further 92 people who were not at work were killed in work-related incidents in 2024/25. This refers to members of the public who were in a workplace but were not working themselves but unfortunately this has risen from to 68 in 2023. The figures relate to work-related accidents and do not include deaths arising from occupational diseases or diseases arising from certain occupational exposures. Around 5,000 Asbestos-related disease deaths occur per year, including mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis.
The HSE also published the annual figures for mesothelioma, a cancer caused by past exposure to asbestos. Current mesothelioma deaths reflect exposure to asbestos that often occurred before the 1980s and annual deaths are expected to continue declining during the next decade.
The statistics show that, although Britain remains one of the safest places to work in the world (The UK consistently has one of the lowest rates of fatal injury across Europe), too many workers are still being fatally injured by their work.
It goes without saying that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted recent trends in health and safety statistics published by HSE and this should be considered when comparing across time periods.
Preventing occupational fatalities should be the main focus for any business. Not only is it a legal requirement to protect the health of your workers (and visitors), but improving the management of worker health and wellbeing will also bring tangible business benefits and protects your most important asset: your reputation. This is where Acorn Health & Safety Ltd can help.
Our ‘Hassle Free’ consultancy service ensures that your business’s health and safety are ‘Hassle Free’ so you can focus on what you and your organisation do best. In addition to accessing competent health and safety advice, you’ll also benefit from a written health and safety policy and an annual review of such, a suite of documents, forms and templates with your company logo on with the use of our online portal to access them all, plus monthly e-zines, safety talks and support to help keep safety on the agenda, face to face meeting at your premises plus a 10% discount on all Acorn Health and Safety training courses including our IOSH courses – Managing Safely and Working Safely – both designed to help you understand your legal obligations and take practical steps to manage health risks more effectively.
If you are unsure of when to report an accident to RIDDOR, read our general advice and guidance on accident reporting here
To help prevent workplace injury, ensure your Risk Assessments are up to date. If you are confused by risk assessments, we offer a 3-hour Risk Assessment course which leaves delegates with a clear understanding of the risk assessment process. We look at several different risk assessment templates (including your own) and complete a number of practical exercises.
If you are unclear about the Health & Safety legislation required for your company, please contact us. Whether you require support with a one-off assessment or a complete health and safety management system we can help.
The full report can be seen here
Prefer to talk about your training and consultancy needs?