A HUDDERSFIELD builder has appeared in court in connection with the collapse of a building in Elland.

Shabir Naseem, 47, appeared at Calderdale Magistrates' Court yesterday - 20 months after Elland town centre was partly sealed off because of the collapse.

Naseem is facing two charges in a Health and Safety Executive prosecution relating to the collapse of Sunset Amusements at Southgate in Elland.

The building collapsed at 9.40am on March 17, 2005, after a roof had been put on and scaffolders removed poles.

No-one was hurt in the incident, but Southgate, Coronation Street, Victoria Road and Elizabeth Street were closed off for a week while Calderdale Council made the site safe.

The first charge Naseem faces is contravening the Health and Safety At Work Act 1974 by failing in his duty to protect members of the public.

He admitted the charge yesterday.

The second charge is that he contravened the 1974 Act by breaching a prohibition notice issued on June 24, 2004, ordering him to stop working at the site.

Naseem denied the accusation.

The case was adjourned until December 21, when Naseem - who gave his trading address as York Avenue, Fartown - will appear again at the Halifax court for a pre-trial review.

When the building collapsed, the nearby Elland Post Office was also shut as a precaution. It could have been hit if the gable end had collapsed.

The collapsed building joined on to Whitakers Opticians, which had to be evacuated.