Center Parcs says it will do more to encourage employees to wear cycle helmets following an inquest into the death of one of its housekeeping supervisors after she was killed in a collision at its Woburn Forest resort in Bedfordshire in 2023.
The BBC reports that the colleague who hit Penny Bulpitt was cleared of causing death by careless driving earlier this year because of “insufficient evidence”.
Bulpitt was on a work bike with a trailer on a one-way road when she was hit from behind by a maintenance worker driving an electric buggy on September 22, 2023. The 67-year-old died in hospital a day later having suffered what was described as a “devastating” head injury.
Cycling and cycling safety are major aspects of the Center Parcs holiday experience. The company seeks to maintain what it terms “a car-light environment” at its various sites and says that, “cycling through our villages is a wonderful way to explore our glorious woodland and get to your next activity.”
The use of cycle helmets is encouraged but not mandatory, in line with the Highway Code. Center Parcs’ website says: “We strongly recommend wearing a helmet for your own safety. Helmets are included free of charge with every hire.”
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The incident occurred on a Friday – one of two ‘changeover’ days per week at Center Parcs. On these days, a significant proportion of guests finish their holidays and leave their lodges which are then prepared for the next wave of guests. Bulpitt had been alongside a row of accommodation lodges where members of her housekeeping team were working.
At this point, John Davies rounded a corner on a converted golf buggy fitted with a speed limiter to keep it below the park’s 10mph limit.
“As I completed the left turn, I suddenly saw a woman on a bicycle in front of my buggy,” said Davies in a written statement to the court. “I was too close to her to have time to take evasive action, by braking or turning.”
Davies was charged with causing Bulpitt’s death by careless driving, but was cleared by a judge at Luton Crown Court in February following evidence from prosecution collision expert PC Warren Knight.
Knight acknowledged that he could not say that all careful and competent drivers would have seen Bulpitt in time to avoid a collision.
Among other things, he said that there was, “a reasonable possibility that Mr Davies saw Mrs Bullpitt but did not register that she was stationary until a collision was unavoidable.”
This week coroner Bina Patel recorded a narrative conclusion, adding that she would consider making recommendations at a later date aimed at preventing similar deaths.
Representing Center Parcs, barrister Laura Stephenson, said: “Steps have been taken by Center Parcs to ensure staff have the proper training and resources. Consideration on increasing the frequency of training to staff about helmet wear [is being given].”
Stephenson also said video training was being reviewed to ensure staff knew the importance of wearing a helmet and that the company was open to any other suggestions.
A Center Parcs spokesman commented: “We strongly recommend the use of helmets by both employees and guests. Helmets are readily available at all times, including dedicated helmets for employees if requested.”
In May 2022, a visitor to Center Parcs’ Longleat Forest site in Wiltshire died from a severe head injury suffered while riding without a helmet. An inquest the following year heard that 53-year-old Kieran Killeen-McGuirk had fallen from a rental bike while riding down a steep, wet hill after a meal and two drinks. The hill in question was labelled and signposted as a “no cycling hill” due to its steep gradient.
Killeen-McGuirk’s widow told the hearing they had been to Center Parcs on “numerous occasions” and “never, ever” been offered a helmet.
That site’s Village Director, Sarah Deverill, said that while it was strongly recommended that guests wear helmets, it was “not compulsory” as it is not a legal requirement in the Highway Code.
Deverill said that upon booking, guests are recommended to add helmets, with similar advisory information sent before arrival and “prominent” signage displayed in bike sheds and across the park where “buckets” of helmets were available. The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death.
4 thoughts on “Center Parcs strengthens bike helmet advice after employee cleared of causing housekeeper’s death with electric buggy”
“I went round the corner too fast to be able to be able to take evasive action or stop in the event of another person or vehicle being on the road in front of me.” That appears to sum up the defendant’s own evidence; in what way does that not concur with the description of careless driving as being driving of a standard below that expected of a careful and competent driver?
The linked BBC report is a disgrace by the way, it describes the incident as “a freak accident”, barely addresses the driver’s behaviour or the fact that he was only acquitted due to insufficient evidence and devotes most of the report to the issue of helmet use.
@Rendel Harris yup classic example of the incompetence Paradox. Poor driver, they had no chance to “avoid an accident” after they failed to drive in the way they’re supposed to because that means this is very unlikely to happen. But…
Fortunately when driving we’ve all accepted that “accidents happen” and “careful and competent” basically means “wasn’t too drunk or high, or on their third time in court for driving without licence / while disqualified”. So “beyond reasonable doubt” has sprung to the rescue.
@chrisonabike And of course when it’s a cyclist who has supposedly contributed to their own demise by not wearing a helmet that adds an extra exculpatory factor. If he had come round the corner and hit and killed a toddler playing in the road in exactly the same position that Mrs Bulpitt was occupying, would he have been found not guilty?
This is pretty much the definition of motornormative. If you drive around a blind corner too fast to stop if there’s an obstacle, that’s reckless. Simple.