Two firms which admitted health and safety breaches after a four-year-old drowned in a swimming pool have been fined a total of £137,000.
Luca Hurle was on holiday with his father Gavin, stepmother Donna Southcott and brothers Oliver and Gabriel at a caravan park in Kirkby-in-Furness in August 2016.
The park is owned by Holker Group Limited. It was prosecuted, alongside Newmac Ltd, which conducted risk assessments on behalf of the group.
The firms were sentenced at Preston Crown Court.
The family, from Wales, were on holiday at Old Park Wood caravan park. Luca got into difficulty in the park’s indoor heated swimming pool.
He had been seen playing with his family, wearing armbands. Fifteen minutes later, he was found unconscious, without the armbands on.
He had suffered severe injuries and was taken to Furness General Hospital in Barrow, then transferred to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, where he later died.
At an earlier hearing, park owner Holker Estates Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to conduct an undertaking in such a way to ensure that people not in its employment were not exposed to risks to their health and safety and failing to comply with an improvement notice.
The South Cumbrian landowner was fined £127,500 and ordered to pay £27,402 in costs.
Newmac Ltd admitted failing to discharge general healthy and safety duties to a person other than an employee at Old Park Wood caravan park.
The company had held a contract with Holker Estates to conduct risk assessments relating to the use of the pool. It was fined £11,000 and ordered to pay £5,000 costs.
After the sentencing, Luca’s mum Amanda Collins said: “Today corrects the public perception that what happened to my son was an accident, and acknowledges the failings of the parties that had a legal and public obligation to keep him safe.
“This has been the darkest time of my life, and yet my son’s light still shines brightly.
“I want to thank South Lakeland District Council and everyone else involved for their exceptional work to get this result, and who cared about justice for Luca as much as I do.
“My family and I now wish to have our privacy at this time.”
