Prison officer awarded nearly £500k after slipping on ice

The High Court heard Simon Butler slipped on ice outside HMP Woodhill

A former prison officer who slipped on ice while on guard dog patrol has won nearly £500,000 in compensation.

Simon Butler, from Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, fractured his right ankle when he fell at HMP Woodhill, near Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire.

He has suffered constant pain since the fall in December 2009, and may even need an amputation, London's High Court was told.

The 47-year-old has been medically retired from the prison service.

The Ministry of Justice accepted he should be compensated owing to a failure to grit the area where he fell.

'Sedentary figure'

The former dog handler now relies on his wife and has turned into a largely sedentary figure, said Judge Rosalind Coe QC - who awarded him £496,717.

Mr Butler and his wife were in court as the judge commended their determination to make the best of their situation.

They were "entirely honest and straightforward witnesses" who "if anything had sought to minimise the toll of the accident on them," the judge added.

Mr Butler, of Bulwick Road, Southwick, is hoping to avoid an amputation but there is a 25% risk that it will become inevitable, the court heard.

Judge Coe told the court: "His quality of life was critically dependent on the ability to walk.

"He and his son used to go to training and would spend time together going to matches, playing cricket or kicking a ball around.

"None of that has been happening since the accident."

Mr Butler was granted the right to return to court for further compensation if his condition deteriorates.