A dairy farm has been fined after a farm worker was struck by a bull and suffered a serious leg injury.

Kidderminster Magistrates Court heard how, on 23 August 2016, the 28-year-old T N Beeston and Son employee entered the shed in which the cows were kept to clear it out when he was struck by a dairy bull at Moreton Hall Farm. The worker, who arrived to work at the farm a year beforehand, suffered a serious leg injury which required an operation.

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An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the mature dairy bull was housed with cows in a cubicle shed which farm workers had to enter three times a day to clear out, while the bull was loose in the same enclosure.

The investigation found that a suitable bull pen, with means of restraint, was not provided on the farm to ensure workers did not have to enter an area occupied by the bull. Mature dairy bulls are large animals and can be unpredictable and aggressive. The farm’s risk assessment identified a risk from the unrestrained bull but failed to identify adequate controls, even though there were clear signs that the bull was getting more difficult to handle.

T N Beeston and Son, of Moreton Hall Farm, Morton Say, Market Drayton pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £16,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,079

HSE inspector Wendy Campbell said after the hearing, “Farmers have a responsibility to assess risks from their cattle and provide suitable housing and handling facilities to ensure that bulls are excluded from areas where they or their employees work. Farm workers should never enter an enclosure when a bull is loose.”