A COMPANY boss charged with the manslaughter of one of his workers was very safety conscious, two of his former colleagues told a court yesterday.

Factory Cover managing director John Elders is accused of the manslaughter of father-of-three Stanley Dawson.

Teesside Crown Court heard that Mr Dawson fell through the roof of a Billingham warehouse, on which he was working in May 2000, and died of head injuries.

Mr Elders, 48, and his company deny the manslaughter of the 50-year-old from Huxley Walk, Hartlepool.

Yesterday, John Patinson, from Seaton Carew, told the court he worked with a structural engineering company. He said he had known Mr Elders since the age of 12 and had worked closely with him through the 1980s.

When asked about Mr Elders' attitude to safety, he said: "He was very conscious of it. He was very much aware of it. He took a real interest in the company and in the men themselves. He was meticulous in what he did."

Samuel Reid, of Great Ayton, told the court he had known Mr Elders for 20 years and had worked with him between 1986 and 1999.

He, too, said Mr Elders took a keen issue in safety matters and added: "He is very honest and trustworthy. He is proud of being an efficient roofing contractor."

Mr Elders, of The Green, Elwick, near Hartlepool, had denied two breaches of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act, but earlier this week he changed his plea to guilty.

The company, of Tofts Farm Industrial Estate, Hartlepool, admits failing to make an adequate risk assessment and failing to provide adequate safety equipment.

The case continues