DVD: How a fall can affect your company

Outtakes produces another training DVD on the ramifications of a fall from height. The Call focuses on the effects on a company when an employee dies at work through a fall.

Those of you who have film Jason Anker: A Fall From Height, will be aware that these films do not pull their punches and deliver their message in a powerful but non-sensational format. As well as the main feature, the DVD The Call also includes several extra versions of the film aimed at specific groups of trainee.

You can see a preview of the video on Access International's Facebook page www.facebook.com/pages/Access-International/127622303982109

The film The Call centres around the testimony of Keith Turney, managing director of an established and extremely successful firm of steeplejacks with an excellent, acknowledged safety record. Central High Rise had won nine RoSPA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) awards in eight years; Mr Turney is a Fellow of RoSPA, active in many organisations such as the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) - he even helped develop the UK's 2005 Working at Height Regulations.

The title refers to the phone call Mr Turney received at his office on an ordinary day, that completely changed his life and the unfolding events surrounding the death of his long-term employee and friend on a routine job.

The HSE decided to prosecute over the fatality. Mr Turney was subjected to the same investigative and court proceedings that any company director or manager would face in similar circumstances. At the same time he was dealing with the emotional trauma of losing a trusted friend and colleague after 30 years.

For eighteen months Mr Turney devoted his time to fighting for his and his company's reputation, compiling evidence for the HSE and the defence. Then a second employee had a completely preventable fall. Once again the individual (who had been on site during the original fatality), like his colleague before him, had ignored the training, the rules, common sense and thoughts of his family and friends to take a safety short cut. Keith decided he could no longer defend himself and pleaded guilty.

The DVD has been designed to make training a variety of groups easy:

• The Main Feature supplies the narrative (there is a shorter edit for quick sessions too)

• The Managers Edit looks in more detail at the process of the prosecution

• Family and Friends explores the emotions of everyone involved

• The Way Forward examines Mr Turney's practical response to further enhancing safety at Central High Rise

You can see a preview of the video on Access International's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/pages/Access-International/127622303982109