Even though it’s been a quarter-century since the final ban on all types of asbestos in the UK in late 1999, this doesn’t mean that the fibrous silicate mineral has stopped being a cause for concern. Indeed, it is believed that as many as 1.5 million buildings across the UK could still contain this notorious carcinogen.
The continued presence of asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) at premises up and down the country, means there is still a very real risk of building users, contractors, and the public coming into contact with this mineral’s lethal fibres.
This factor, along with the long latency period for asbestos-related disease – symptoms often only appearing many decades after the exposed individual breathed in the substance – should make it unsurprising that even during the 2020s, approximately 5,000 people per year in Great Britain die from asbestos-related disease.
The continued asbestos risks in the 2020s necessitate action by dutyholders
If you are a “dutyholder” for a particular building in accordance with current asbestos legislation in the UK, you will need to be vigilant about the asbestos risks that may exist at your site.
In the case of any given building in the UK constructed or renovated prior to the year 2000, there will be a very strong likelihood of ACMs still being contained inside. If this is the situation for your own property, you will have certain legal and moral responsibilities to ensure the effective management of any potential risks posed by ACMs.
This this article, we have sought to provide a clear and actionable checklist to help you manage asbestos in your building(s) both safely and legally.
Whether you are a building owner, a health and safety manager, a facilities or estates manager, or another person with responsibilities under the “duty to manage” requirements, you are likely to find this checklist informative and useful.
Understanding the duty to manage asbestos
The “duty to manage” asbestos is set out in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR 2012), which is the overarching legislation for the management of asbestos in Great Britain.
An excellent source of information on CAR 2012 and the “duty to manage” requirements is the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE)’s Managing and working with asbestos document, under the L143 series code. A free PDF copy can be downloaded from the HSE website.
In practice, the dutyholder for a given non-domestic premises could include the:
- Building owner
- Landlord for the premises
- Person or organisation that is otherwise in control of the building’s repair or maintenance.
The “duty to manage” asbestos applies to all non-domestic premises such as factories and shops, as well as the “common parts” (or communal areas) of multi-occupancy domestic buildings, like purpose-built flats.
By adhering to all “duty to manage” obligations, you can help ensure legal compliance in the management of your building, as well as potentially life-saving outcomes.
The essential checklist: step-by-step compliance guide
Below, then, are the vital actions you should be taking to ensure your fulfilment of the “duty to manage” requirements as a dutyholder under CAR 2012:
Identify and locate asbestos
Dutyholders for premises dating to before the year 2000 must presume there is asbestos in their building, unless there is strong evidence of this not being the case. If, then, certain areas of the premises are inaccessible, it must be presumed that these contain ACMs.
Reasonable steps must be taken by the dutyholder to find out whether ACMs are present in their building – and if so, what the location(s), amount(s), and condition of those materials are. This can be achieved by arranging for visual checks and inspections.
Commission professional asbestos surveys
To gather accurate information about the ACMs in their property, the next step that a conscientious dutyholder typically takes, is arranging for a professional asbestos survey to be conducted.
During a building’s normal occupation and use, it is an asbestos management survey that is needed. This type of asbestos survey allows for information to be gathered that can then be fed into an asbestos register and an asbestos management plan for the premises.
By contrast, as the name implies, it is a refurbishment or demolition survey that will be required prior to disruptive structural work at a given property.
Both types of asbestos survey are likely to require samples of materials to be taken. The subsequent testing of these materials at a laboratory accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) allows for accurate results to be gained.
Assess condition and risk
If ACMs are, indeed, found to be present at your building, the physical state of the ACMs will need to be evaluated.
Furthermore, the specific risk posed by those materials – including the likelihood of the ACMs being disturbed and dangerous asbestos fibres being subsequently released into the air – must be considered.
Such aspects as where the materials are sited, as well as their accessibility and usage of the building, will all affect the risk the ACMs are likely to pose.
Record and register asbestos information
The details gained from the asbestos survey can be used to put together an “asbestos register”. This is a live document that must always contain the latest information on the presence and condition of ACMs in the given building.
Your own property’s asbestos register, then, must set out all the known and presumed ACMs at the premises, as well as the types of ACMs present, and their amount and condition.
Moreover, the asbestos register should note any particular areas that haven’t been surveyed – for example, because the surveyor wasn’t able to access them (in which case, it will need to be presumed that ACMs are present in these spaces).
Create an asbestos management plan
The asbestos register for your building will need to be just one part of the broader asbestos management plan, or AMP. The purpose of the AMP will be to set out the procedures and arrangements by which the asbestos risks at your site will be managed.
It will be crucial for your AMP to state exactly who will be responsible for managing the asbestos risks at your site, including deputies.
Furthermore, ACM monitoring schedules and emergency protocols will need to be set out. Information should be included, too, on how you will share your asbestos register with workers or contractors whenever they carry out maintenance work at your premises.
Implement control measures
Finally, it will be time to put various elements of your AMP into action.
A vital step here, will be deciding whether work needs to be done on ACMs by a contractor holding a licence from the HSE. The use of a licensed contractor will be necessary for certain higher-risk forms of work with asbestos – for example, any work on sprayed asbestos, or any removal of asbestos insulation.
The implementation of a permit-to-work system can help ensure any contractors who work on asbestos at your property are appropriately trained and use safe working methods.
It will be necessary, too, to provide asbestos awareness training to relevant staff. Individuals requiring such training are those who may conceivably come into contact with asbestos during their work, even if they are not expected to directly handle the substance.
Monitor, review, and update
Dutyholders are advised to have their property’s asbestos register updated at least once a year as part of their asbestos management review. Arranging an annual re-inspection, then, will enable you to confirm what the present asbestos situation is at your site.
However, you may update your asbestos register even more frequently than this, if anything changes the risk that a particular ACM is likely to pose. For example, an update will be needed following any disturbances, renovations, or staff changes.
To reaffirm: an asbestos register is meant to be a live and current document. So, as a dutyholder, you must commit yourself to keeping it up to date.
How Vision Pro Software supports asbestos management
If you’re comparing your options for cloud-based platforms to make the management of ACMs much easier, here are the various ways in which Vision Pro Software can deliver this for your site:
Centralised compliance hub
Our “duty to manage” software consolidates asbestos survey results, registers, and management plans in one place. This can give you a quick and convenient overview of the real-time data for the asbestos situation across all the sites for which you are a dutyholder.
Risk and audit automation
With Vision Pro Software, you can reduce the need for manual tracking, and the risks of errors and oversights. Our platform has functionality for scheduled inspections, automated reminders, and non-compliance alerts.
Digital registers and mobile access
Live asset tagging and onsite access to ACM data are made easy with Vision Pro Software, thanks to the Near-Field Communication (NFC) and Radio-Frequency Identification (RFiD) integration. The associated mobile app further supports field audits and instant updates.
Custom templates and visual reports
Standardised forms for asbestos surveys and risk scoring are incorporated into our platform. Meanwhile, the intuitive and informative dashboards enable users to visualise priority areas and compliance gaps.
Stakeholder collaboration
Vision Pro Software also makes possible the secure sharing of asbestos registers with contractors and staff. The integrated communication and incident reporting channels further make it easier for stakeholders to work together.
Ongoing value
If you are a dutyholder for a growing estate of properties, you will be pleased to learn that Vision Pro Software is highly scalable.
You are also likely to notice over time in your use of our platform, that the incorporated analytics and audit histories allow for informed decision-making at every stage. Moreover, Vision Pro Software is invaluable for demonstrating due diligence in audits and regulatory inspections.
Conclusion: act now to put your asbestos management on the right side of the law
Ultimately, if asbestos does turn out to be present at your site, the management of such ACMs will be a non-negotiable requirement. After all, this is a matter of legal compliance and saving lives.
The great news is that with the right tools and knowledge, it doesn’t have to be too difficult for you as a dutyholder to ensure safe environments and regulatory peace of mind.
For further information about Vision Pro Software and how our platform can help you meet the requirements of the “duty to manage” asbestos, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
