He was in the care of his grandparents when he fell from the jetty. Tedmund went on to sue the council, the State of NSW, and his grandparents.
In December 2019, the court found Coffs Harbour City Council negligent and ordered it to pay financial compensation to Tedmund, while the State and his grandparents were cleared of responsibility.
The jetty was built in 1892. After almost a century of use, it fell into disrepair and was closed in 1984.
The State government owned the jetty, but in 1990, the council agreed to accept responsibility for the jetty on the condition it adhered to current safety and maintenance standards.
At the time the jetty was constructed, there were no relevant standards and the gap between the rails was larger than what is allowed now.
After the jetty restoration, council took over management in 2002, with the jetty remaining a State asset.
After the handover, two incidents occurred where one child fell from the jetty deck and a second child nearly fell. Council also received a report in May 2007, of a young child nearly falling from the deck, but caught in time.
No changes were made to the jetty railing following those incidents and the City did not conduct a risk review.
The City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder took strong steps forward in supporting the mental wellbeing of its workforce by expanding the one-day RU OK? Day initiative into a week of presentations, workshops and activities to help staff develop skills and techniques to improve their mental resilience.
When it comes to sun protection things are a little more complicated than SLIP, SLOP, SLAP, SLIDE, SEEK for outdoor workers.
With summer on its way, it’s important to focus on appropriate personal protective equipment
to shield workers from the harmful effects of UV rays while maintaining wearer comfort.
If a local government is aware of an incident, it should consider if it requires further review (in terms of the existence of a possible systemic problem).
If intending to provide a risk warning, it should be specific (and helpfully identify the risk), and not make general observations of potential concern.
Local governments should not be satisfied that simply because a piece of infrastructure was compliant in accordance with past standards, that it remains so.
The local government should know that, if they invite the public to use some form of infrastructure, it would likely owe a duty as to its condition.
The Court found that while the Council believed the jetty complied with appropriate standards, this was merely a relevant factor in determining whether the Council exercised reasonable care.
This case imposed a significant financial liability upon the Council (to say nothing of course of the serious injury suffered by the plaintiff).
Ultimately, given the previous incidents of a similar nature, which the Council was aware of, the Court found it was not satisfactory for the council to have taken no action to address the known risks, simply because it was satisfied that the jetty complied with the relevant standards.
The positive is that the adoption of an effective risk management regime will avoid the repetition of such liabilities in Western Australia.
Great Southern Risk Forum hosted by the City of Albany on 19 November 2020. For more information, contact Great Southern Regional Risk Coordinator Monty Archdale.
To register contact Anne Clarke on 9483 8850 or email [email protected].
The answer will be different for every person, but local government is always at the heart of what turns a group of people into a community. It’s the gathering places of open spaces, playgrounds and sports facilities; it’s the library, community and recreation centres.
More than 140,000 people turned out for the pinnacle event of Perth Festival earlier this year. Fans lined Canning Highway to mark 40 years since AC/DC’s front man Bon Scott was laid to rest at Fremantle Cemetery.
Great Eastern Wheatbelt RRC Chris Gilmour tells a story about a local grader operator who had a near miss with a small child. “The (grader) driver was a grandfather and it really shook him up,” he said.
LGIS is the unifying name for the dedicated suite of risk financing and management services for WA local governments, established by the WA Local Government Association in conjunction with JLT Public Sector (part of the Marsh group of companies). LGIS is managed by JLT Public Sector (ABN 69 009 098 864 AFS Licence 226827).
Risk Matters, via this website, is designed to keep members, their staff and elected members informed on topical risk management and insurance issues and LGIS programs and services.
