THE parent company of Hayden Bakeries, Devizes, has been ordered to pay more than £10,000 after admitting that a pastry rolling machine on which a worker crushed her hand was poorly maintained.

Kelly Chowney's hand was trapped in the machine for 20 minutes and she spent a week in hospital with severe crush injuries and lacerations.

Last Thursday Denis Scott, managing director of the Real Good Food Company, entered a guilty plea at Devizes Magistrates Court on behalf of the firm for failing to comply with the Health and Safety Act.

The company was fined £3,000, with £2,456 costs. It was also ordered to pay compensation of £5,000 to Miss Chowney whom, it was said, is contemplating a civil court claim.

Miss Chowney, 23, was lifting a guard on a pastry rolling machine when her hand became trapped between rollers, the court heard.

The incident occurred on April 6 and Miss Chowney was off work for 22 weeks.

The company took disciplinary action against her for lifting the guard and issued her with a final written warning, the court heard. Her pay was stopped for four weeks after the incident.

Miss Chowney is back at work at the Hopton Industrial estate bakery, but she has restricted movement in her injured hand, the court was told.

Health and safety inspector Liam Osbourne, prosecuting, said that two separate previous owners had been prosecuted for breaches of health and safety law.

He said that managers were well aware there was a poor maintenance regime at the company which employs about 300 people.

The accident happened after a billet of dough shot out between the rollers of a pastry brake being operated by two employees.

The operators asked Miss Chowney to look at the machine rather like a large domestic mangle with steel rollers and she lifted a guard to clear some flour. Miss Chowney slipped and her left hand became trapped.

In a statement Miss Chowney said that employees regularly lifted the guard when billets of pastry became stuck.

Mr Osbourne showed the court a metal cam which should have operated a micro switch to stop the machine as soon as the guard was lifted.

He said a slot in the cam had become enlarged and it was possible to lift the guard far enough to insert a hand, or even a head, without the machine being automatically switched off.

"It was clear these cams had not been replaced for at least five years," said Mr Osbourne who described the incident as "an accident waiting to happen."

Mr Osbourne said that, following the accident, the company had put the machine back into use while still in a dangerous condition and had also operated another machine in a dangerous state.

Andrew Stokes, representing the company, said there had been significant management changes since the Real Good Food company had taken over Hayden in July 2003.

The company accepted that safety checks had been insufficient and had taken appropriate steps.

Mr Stokes admitted the company put the pastry roller back into use following the accident but said this was only because the defects had not been identified.