Asbestos inspections in council buildings

Hundreds of council building inspections will be carried out by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to check councils are managing the risk of asbestos properly.

HSE inspectors will visit the head offices of dozens of councils across the county to make sure asbestos risks are being effectively managed to keep people safe. Each council visit will see inspections take place at several sites within each local authority’s property portfolio. This work continues previous inspection campaigns that targeted hospitals and schools.

The inspections will assess how local authorities manage asbestos risks within their buildings and meeting to ‘duty to manage’ (DTM) requirements under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR).

The duty to manage asbestos covers a wide range of buildings, some regulated by HSE and others regulated by local authorities. These visits will look at asbestos management in public buildings, including libraries, museums and leisure centres.

People who visit or work in these buildings will not be exposed if asbestos is managed effectively, but it can become dangerous when disturbed or damaged.

HSE launched The Asbestos — Your Duty campaign in January 2024 to reach those responsible for maintenance and repair of non-domestic buildings built before the year 2000 to raise awareness of the legal duty to manage asbestos in buildings.

Helen Jones, HSE’s Head of Health and Public Services Sector, said: “Local authorities have a hugely important role to play in keeping people safe.

“They can do this through the maintenance of their property portfolios and in their role as a regulator.

“To keep people safe from its harms, a culture of safety managing asbestos is needed in our building industry and among those responsible for buildings.

“Asbestos exposure in Great Britain is still the single greatest cause of work-related deaths due to exposures decades ago.

“Together, we must protect people in the workplace and reduce future work-related ill health.”

Those who are responsible for building maintenance must do everything to comply with the law and prevent exposure to this dangerous substance, which was widely used in post-war production before it was banned in 1999.

Premises built before the turn of the century, especially those built between 1950 and 1980 when asbestos use was at its peak, must carry out the necessary checks, understand their legal responsibilities and actively manage any asbestos they are responsible for.

HSE will check how asbestos is managed when visiting a range of council buildings to ensure they have the correct arrangements in place.

HSE inspectors will contact the local authority before visiting to arrange a suitable date and time for the inspection.