Olivia Burt: Pub chain guilty of health and safety breach

First-year Durham University undergraduate Olivia Burt died after suffering injuries when a partition collapsed as she waited to get into Missoula, in Durham city centre.

The venue, which was operated by the Stonegate Pub Company, was struggling to deal with an unexpected influx of students on the night of the 20-year-old’s death, Teesside Crown Court heard.

On Wednesday, Judge Howard Crowson ruled that three charges of breaching health and safety regulations should be dismissed after directing the jury to record not guilty verdicts.

Olivia Burt

The jury returned its guilty verdict this afternoon.

Judge Howard Crowson adjourned the case until later today when the company will be sentenced for the breach.

He told the jury that the only available sentence was a financial penalty.

Jurors have watched CCTV footage showing the collapse of the screen in the background and shocked students and security staff rushing over.

They also saw footage of an incident around half an hour earlier when a barrier in the area collapsed.

Miss Burt, from Milford-on-Sea, died from head injuries suffered when a partition barrier or screen fell on her amid a surge in the queue of students waiting to gain access to the rear of the venue, in the Walkergate complex, late on February 7, 2018.

Speaking after the verdict, Olivia’s parents, Nigel and Paula Burt said: "Olivia was our only child and meant everything to us. It is incomprehensible to us how she could have died on a night out with friends whilst simply standing in a queue. 

"Stonegate is the largest pub company in the UK. According to their annual report 2022, Stonegate doubled their revenue to £1.6 billion and their vision is ‘to raise the bar on the British pub by being the best for our guests, people and communities.’ This did not happen at Missoula and led to the death of our wonderful daughter."

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