A care home owner who illegally installed a gas cooker which led to a member of his staff being hospitalised has been jailed.

Amarjit Sehmi, 66, was warned by employees at Crowhurst Care Home in Old Forewood Lane, Crowhurst, near Hastings, that he should not install the gas cooker in March 2022 as he was not qualified.

But Sehmi ignored the warnings and told staff to cook that evening’s meal for residents on the replacement cooker.

The worker who prepared the meal attended A&E later that evening with a heavy headache and disorientation. Other workers reported a pungent smell in the kitchen.

Emergency gas engineers were called to the property and the gas cooker was found to be in a dangerous state and was disconnected.

Care home staff reported the issue to the environmental health team at Rother District Council who started the investigation which led to the conviction of Sehmi.

At an earlier hearing, Sehmi pleaded guilty to two offences under sections 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and two offences under regulation 3 (1 and 3) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.

At Lewes Crown Court on Tuesday, September 5, Sehmi apologised for his behaviour, saying he would never touch a gas appliance again.

Sehmi, of Boston Gardnes, Brentford, was sentenced to six months in prison.

In sentencing Sehmi to immediate custody, His Honour Judge van der Zwart said: “You do not need to be a gas engineer to understand the risk of gas.”

He added: “You ultimately decided to install a cooker. You positively created a risk of serious injury or death when you had increased responsibility for vulnerable persons and members of the public nearby.”

Councillor Kathryn Field, portfolio holder at Rother District Council, said: “This case is a stark reminder to all landlords and employers. Only qualified professional engineers who hold Gas Safe registration can work on gas appliances and systems.

“If there are concerns about health and safety in the workplace, we listen and take action.”

The residents of Crowhurst Care Home were moved to new accommodation and the home closed in August 2022. The affected worker made a full recovery.