More than 250 injuries at work were reported in Northumberland last year, figures show.

The Trades Union Congress says a drop in reports nationally is the result of funding cuts and lack of awareness of the duty.

In 2019-20, the Health and Safety Executive was notified of 294 non-fatal incidents in the area – 34 fewer than in the previous year. There were no fatal injuries.

Of the injuries 87 were specified – these include incidents such as serious burns and amputations.

A further 207 resulted in an employee or self-employed person being unable to perform their normal duties for more than seven consecutive days.

The figures mean 271 Northumberland workers per 100,000 were injured at work last year, higher than the North East’s average rate of 248.

But the HSE said that its preferred method for measuring injuries in the workplace was through a household survey, which estimates that in 2019-20 around 693,000 workers in Great Britain sustained a non-fatal injury.

Shelly Asquith, TUC’s health and safety policy officer, said: “The HSE themselves accept there is a big problem with under-reporting.”