Labour-intensive narrow reef stoping, as traditionally practiced in South African gold and platinum mines, is almost unique in the modern first-world mechanised mining environment. Shortcomings of the system include the ever-increasing cost of labour, a cap on achievable productivity and a poor safety record, particularly in the field of rockrelated accidents. In the absence of sustainable alternative technologies, the South African mining industry has spent millions of Rand refining the present system, focussing on improving workplace safety. This paper details the ongoing evolution of stope support at Impala Platinum’s Rustenburg operations, and the impact on rock-related safety performance