Mantelpiece fixing 'blunder' led to four-year-old's death - inquest

A lack of mortar fixing a mantelpiece to a fireplace contributed to the death of a young boy when it collapsed on top of him, an inquest jury ruled today.

Four-year-old Matthew Green died from severe chest injuries after the 110lb stone lintel fell on him at his home in Towcester, Northamptonshire, on October 15, 2005.

Recording a narrative verdict, the jury at his inquest at Rushden & Diamonds Football Club, Irthlingborough, Northants, said today that Matthew died of cardiac injury caused by blunt chest trauma.

The verdict said: "At approximately 11.30am on October 15, 2005, at 10 Coulthard Close, Towcester, Matthew William Green died as a result of the stone mantelpiece impacting on his chest.

"The mantelpiece became detached from the headstone as a result of a failure to apply a sufficient amount of approximately mixed mortar and/or additional fixings.

"The lack of national industry standards and regulation for the fitting of fire surrounds, including training, installation, quality inspection, secondary review and audit paper trails, were also a contributory factor."

The four-day inquest heard that Matthew's parents, David and Gail, had bought the house from Persimmon Homes in 2003 but had never had any concerns about the safety of the fireplace.

On the day of the tragedy, Matthew was at home with his 38-year-old father and sister Rachel, now 15, while his mother was out on a last-minute shopping trip.

Matthew and Mr Green greeted family friends Alan and Karen Brugnoli at the front door before the youngster ran off into the lounge.

His father described hearing a "loud crash" from the living room.

The group ran into the lounge to find Matthew lying under the stone mantel, which had broken in two and crushed him.

Matthew was rushed to Northampton General Hospital by air ambulance, but died later.

The inquest heard that his ribs had been fractured and his heart had been ruptured.

The court heard there had been "insufficient" mortar attaching the mantelpiece and no additional screws or metal dowels recommended by experts.

Persimmon Homes, which sub-contracted company KD Childs to fit the fireplaces, had not checked the standards and had never received documents about how fireplaces were fitted.

A mantelpiece had previously fallen off at another Persimmon Home but it was treated as a "one-off" incident.

Assistant Deputy Coroner for Northamptonshire Tom Osborne said today that he planned to write to the appropriate department which deals with building regulations and standards to urge it to write a regulation covering the fixing of mantelpieces.

He said he would also be writing to Persimmon Homes in the hope the company would put in place its own standards regulating the fixing of fireplaces.

After the verdict was given, Matthew's distraught parents held each other and wept, supported by other family members.

Speaking through tears outside the inquest, Mrs Green said: "Matthew was a lovely boy, full of life, laughter and happiness.

"He was enjoying having just started school, where he had made lots of friends.

"He would wake up every morning with a smile on his face, looking forward to the excitement of a new day.

"This tragic incident has devastated our whole family and has been particularly traumatic for David, myself and Matthew's sister Rachel.

"You never expect to lose a child so young who had so much to look forward to.

"It is impossible to put into words the effect of such a loss. He is sadly missed by us all.

"We have waited over three years for this inquest since Matthew's tragic death. This is an accident which should never have happened.

"You always think that your children are safe in their own home."

Mr Green said they were "deeply concerned" to hear this was not an isolated incident and that about 120 fireplaces had been repaired by Persimmon in the 12 months following Matthew's death.

He said they were also astonished that no industry standards currently existed for fixing stone fireplaces.

He said: "In our opinion, we feel steps need to be taken by the relevant bodies to ensure that formal standards are put in place as a matter of urgency to help prevent any further incidents."

The inquest heard evidence from a worker at KD Childs, who said he had no formal training when he started at the company.

Christian Childs said the firm operated a "sort of living, breathing training".

The inquest heard that the lintel at the Greens' home had been attached using only several blobs of mortar.

Stone expert John Bysouth said there had been "insufficient bedding mortar" and there were no statutory regulations in the fitting of fireplaces.

The inquest heard that it was believed Matthew may have swung or held on to the mantelpiece, causing it to fall off, but his parents said they had never seen him do it before.

Health and Safety Executive investigator James Grieve also said there was a "distinct lack of mortar" on the fireplace.

He told the inquest: "If there had been a full bed of mortar applied in the case of 10 Coulthard Close, we would not be here today.

"If there had been a full bed of mortar then it is unlikely to have fallen."

After the verdict today, a Persimmon spokesman said the company extended its deepest sympathies to the Green family for their tragic loss.

He said they agreed with the jury that the lack of any national industry standards and regulations had contributed to the accident.

The spokesman said: "It is group-wide policy to obtain appropriate health and safety assessments for all our sub-contractors and we expect that, as experts in their field, they carry out their duties in accordance with current regulations and industry standards.

"Sadly there have never been any such regulations or industry standards in relation to fireplace installation."

He said they believed they had appointed a competent sub-contractor and, if KD Childs had applied sufficient mortar, then "the accident would probably not have happened".

The spokesman said they would also encourage the HSE to review fireplace installation standards and policies across the new homes industry but also to cover renovations.