IBB Solicitors Personal Injury team article17 October 2012

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Reports on Asbestos Levels in Schools

Following the closure of Cwmcarn High School in Caerphilly due to asbestos concerns, the Education Minister has announced that all schools in Wales must deliver reports on asbestos levels by next week.

The finding of asbestos in this school highlights the dangers for all those that learn and work in schools and serves as a reminder to those who manage asbestos in schools, of their responsibilities.

The presence of asbestos in such a school is not unusual given that more than 75% of schools in Britain contain some form of asbestos. Asbestos containing materials (ACMs) can be found in school floor and ceiling tiles, insulation boards, lagging on pipes and sprayed in door and window surrounds. When asbestos is disturbed and fibres become airborne, inhaling these fibres can cause serious lung conditions.

As was the case of Cwmcarn High School, it is often at the point of maintenance or refurbishment works, that asbestos in schools is most likely to be a risk.

So what duties are there on those responsible for ensuring schools are safe?

All schools will have a “dutyholder”, who is responsible

for managing asbestos at the school. Who that person is will depend upon the type of school; it will either be the local authority or school governors, or in the case of independent schools, the proprietors or trustees. If the local authority shares the responsibility of maintenance and repair with the school governing body, then the responsibility to manage asbestos will also be shared between them.

The dutyholder should know whether the school contains asbestos, where it is and what condition it is in. This is done by carrying out a management survey. If asbestos is present then they should ensure it is managed properly, assess the risk to employees and pupils and provide information about the location and condition of asbestos to anyone likely to work or disturb the asbestos. It is not only school caretakers, or contractors that may come across asbestos. Staff that are likely to disturb asbestos, for example by pining work into walls, should also be suitably trained. All action should be recorded in an asbestos management plan, which together with the survey should be reviewed and revised at regular intervals.

It is these plans that the Education Minister will be waiting to receive.

Michelle ConnellSolicitor, Personal Injury & Clinical Negligence teamIBB Solicitors