With gathering momentum for a national, digital record of asbestos in public buildings, Nicola Dawn, a Partner at Forbes Solicitors, looks at how this could benefit local authorities.

Raising public awareness of asbestos

A recent segment on national TV show Good Morning Britain highlighted a mother’s plight to raise awareness of the presence of asbestos in public buildings. Emily-Jane Scandrett bravely talked about suffering with an asbestos-related cancer, pleural mesothelioma, and is calling for action to accelerate the removal of asbestos from buildings such as schools and hospitals.

Members of Parliament have previously called for a commitment from government to remove all asbestos from public and commercial buildings within 40 years. There’s been no agreement on this deadline and there are separate claims that the rebuilding programme in England will take more than 400 years to remove all asbestos from schools and hospitals.

There are suggestions that a digital register, which lists the public buildings still containing asbestos, should be made mandatory. This could even include a QR code on local authority owned premises, that people can easily scan to find out more information about the presence of any asbestos in that particular building.

Community interest company, the UK National Asbestos Register (UKNAR), is making a digital register a reality. It has created a platform to facilitate a national database of asbestos registers for UK buildings and is aiming for at least 80% of all public sector buildings with asbestos to be included by December 2027. This could enhance how local authorities manage asbestos.

The benefits of an asbestos database

There may well be a view that such a public-facing, accessible record of asbestos in buildings isn’t necessary. The argument against being that, in most instances, asbestos will not prove a health risk if it is well maintained and not disturbed (i.e. broken, cracked or water damaged). When asbestos is disturbed, it can release very fine particles into the air, which can be breathed in and cause illnesses including pleural thickening, asbestosis and mesothelioma. These types of diseases can take ten to 40 years to develop in a person following exposure to asbestos dust.

Would the creation of a mandatory register for all public buildings containing asbestos prove an administrative burden for local authorities? Would it cause unnecessary concern among users of such buildings? And could heighted awareness of asbestos drive liability claims? On the contrary, a digital record could enable owners of public buildings (and commercial landlords) to more effectively reduce the risks of asbestos to minimise exposure and mitigate potential costs and liabilities. Many local authorities carry out asbestos risk assessments to prioritise the management and removal of the material in public sector buildings. In addition, they should also be keeping some form of asbestos register. Such risk assessments and existing registers create data that could be easily inputted into a national database, to create a more transparent approach to asbestos management. This could help to educate and reassure building users, whether they are staff, contractors or visitors.

Greater transparency and awareness of asbestos management may improve the detection and quicker remediation of possible risks. If concerns arise about the presence and condition of asbestos, the national, digital record could be quickly consulted to check the management status of the material, determine if any urgent action needs to be taken and to log updates. In many ways, a digital record could help empower any user of a public building to practically and effectively report observations that help prevent disturbed asbestos from going untreated.

If a national record of asbestos in public buildings becomes mandatory or local authorities opt to join such a digital database, it’s something they should proactively communicate to key parties including insurers, employees and visitors. Communication about a digital register of asbestos and clear instruction about how to use this, could encourage discussion and awareness of asbestos. This may well avoid any accidental disturbance of the material to minimise exposure to asbestos dust. Consulting an easily accessible register could also be made a compulsory part of checks ahead of any building maintenance, to further avoid possible asbestos disturbances.

Local authorities should check the insurance cover they have in place to protect against asbestos related claims and damages. The regular management of a digital record that accurately details asbestos risk management plans, action and communication, could show how organisations are proactively addressing any problematic areas to safeguard health and safety. It may also prove a practical step to digitalising and sharing asbestos risk management records nationally, which could promote best-practice to further minimise exposure to asbestos dust.

A national, digital record of asbestos in public buildings may create opportunity for local authorities to make people more aware of related risks and set their minds at rest that asbestos has been deemed to be in a safe condition.