A builder has gone on trial accused of causing the death of 17-year-old boy who died after falling 22 feet as he painted a house while using a ladder instead of scaffolding.

Colin Jeffery ran a business called Utterly Gutterly in which he allegedly exploited the bravado of youngsters who were sent to work without the proper safety precautions.

Mason Beau Jennians, aged 17, known as Beau, died after falling from a ladder while painting barge boards under the gutter of a large private house in Abbotskerswell.

He was moonlighting for Jeffery three or four days a week while taking an electrical course at South Devon College and was often sent onto roofs without any safety training or precautions.

Just days before his death he had taken a selfie from the roof of a house where he was painting a chimney while the only thing stopping him from falling was a piece of rope tied around the chimney.

Jeffery, aged 58, never used scaffolding because he could undercut competitors by getting his workers to use ladders instead, Exeter Crown Court was told.

Keen skateboarder Beau, who had a second part-time job at McDonalds, was found unconscious at the foot of the ladder by the owner of The Coach House in Abbotskerswell where he was working on December 4, 2014.

He was taken by air ambulance to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth but died the next day. Jeffery gave his mother a lift to the hospital during which he tried to tell her Beau was self-employed.

Jeffery, of Durham Close, Paignton, denies manslaughter and failing to ensure the safety of an employee working at height.

The jury were told he has admitted four charges under the Health and Safety at Work Act of failing to ensure the safety of employees between April 2014 and February 2015.

Jeffery’s case is that Beau was self-employed and responsible for his own safety.

Mr David Sapiecha, prosecuting, said Jeffery had been grossly negligent in the way he ran Utterly Gutterly, which employed a largely young workforce, including Beau and a 16-year-old friend.

He said: ‘He was uncaring and cavalier. He did not ensure work was properly planned, thought about or supervised. It was not carried out in a manner to ensure reasonable safety, including the provision of appropriate equipment.

‘We say he had a duty of care to his employee Beau Jennians and he breached that duty in a way which fell so far short of what is reasonable that it was grossly negligent.

‘His company never used scaffolding. All the work was done from ladders or by standing on the roofs themselves. Ladders should be used for access, not for working for any length of time.

‘He ran his company from home with no documentation. He paid employees cash in hand. The had no contracts of employment and he paid no National Insurance or PAYE.

‘He used this lack of formality to distance himself from any scrutiny. He employed those who were young or were desperate.

‘He employed youngsters predominantly. There were lots who were 17, 18 or 19 and were impressed by the chance to make money but naive and brave about their own safety at that time in their life.

‘They were ignorant of what they were being asked to do because of their immaturity and vulnerability. Jeffery manipulated and used them. They were young and filled with youthful exuberance.

‘He had a high turnover of employees as each realised his promises of cash were never going to materialise and aware he was putting them in serious danger.

‘When he recruited, there was no application form and no inquiries about relevant experience or skills. These were inherently dangerous work activities and he never used scaffolding or mobile platforms, it seems so he could underquote competitors.

‘The dangers of working from ladders include over-reaching and instability. There was no safety net and no safety equipment.’

Mr Sapiecha showed the jury footage shot by a drone of four other houses where Jeffery had carried out roof work, including one where Beau had been tied by a nylon rope to a chimney as he painted the outside.

The jury were also shown a selfie which Beau took while hanging from the roof, showing him smiling at the camera lens with the house’s gardens beneath him.

Beau died on the day when he returned to work full-time at the end of his college term. He was on his own and nobody inside the house heard anything. The couple who lived there did not know anything was wrong until the husband found him unconscious as he left to catch a train.

The ladder was still in place and showed Beau had been working at a height of 6.7 metres, almost exactly 22 feet.

The trial continues.