Working at Height Around Open Windows: Are We Focusing on Both Sides of the Opening?
When planning window replacement, glazing or façade work at height, attention often turns immediately to external access.
Can scaffolding be erected? Is a MEWP suitable? Will rope access be required?
These are important questions, but they can divert attention from another serious risk: the open window itself.
Once a window or section of glazing is removed, the opening becomes an exposed edge. This can place operatives at risk whether they are working internally, from scaffolding or using rope access.
Falls from height remain a major risk
The latest provisional Health and Safety Executive figures show that falls from height caused 31 worker deaths in Great Britain during 2025/26—the largest single category of fatal workplace accident.
A recent HSE prosecution also highlighted the risk presented by unprotected window openings. A worker fell from a scaffold platform through an unglazed opening and into the building. The HSE found that boarding or additional internal scaffold guardrails could reasonably have been installed.
The lesson is not that scaffolding is unsafe. It remains the correct access method for many projects. However, providing external access does not automatically control the risks created on the internal side of an opening.
Survey the room as well as the façade
Before work begins, contractors and surveyors should consider:
Who will be working near the opening
The size, location and surrounding construction
Where operatives will stand during each stage
Whether they need to reach beyond the internal face
How glass, tools and equipment will be handled
The risk of dropped objects
Whether suitable anchorage is available
The required emergency and rescue arrangements
These questions should be addressed during the survey—not after the existing window has been removed.
HSE guidance requires work at height to be properly planned, supervised and undertaken by competent people using suitable equipment. Where work at height cannot be avoided, the priority is to prevent falls before relying on measures that only reduce their consequences.
Creating a controlled internal workspace
The Stronghold® is a lightweight, mobile internal anchor and barrier system developed for work around open windows, glazing and façades.
On suitable projects, it creates a controlled working area around the opening and provides anchorage for trained operatives using work-positioning or restraint equipment.
The system can be installed internally without drilling or permanent fixings, accommodate openings up to five metres wide and provide anchorage for up to three trained operatives. It can be assembled in under ten minutes and also allows tools and equipment to be tethered.
This can provide an alternative where suitable structural anchorage is unavailable or where external scaffolding would be difficult, disruptive or commercially disproportionate. It can also complement scaffolding or rope access by providing protection and anchorage on the internal side of an opening.
Selecting the right solution
No single work-at-height system is suitable for every building or application. Some projects will still require scaffolding, a MEWP, rope access or another engineered solution.
The important point is that an open window should never be treated as an incidental stage of the work. Both sides of the opening must be assessed, and the chosen system must be suitable for the building, the task and the people undertaking it.
Planning window, glazing or façade work at height? Send us photographs, drawings or project information, and we can help assess whether the Stronghold could provide a safe and practical solution.