Health and Safety Campaigns - The Important Issues

Asbestos Campaign

Asbestos still has a major presence in many homes and workplaces, and not least schools. The recent, tragic case of Dianne Willmore has set an important precedent with regard to asbestos management in all of our schools. Dianne died in October 2009 of mesothelioma contracted while she was a pupil at a school run by Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council in the 1970s. The Supreme Court found that the local authority were negligent in allowing this to happen, and therefore bore full reponsibility for her death. Compensation of two hundred and forty thousand pounds was awarded.

We should be concerned that the government have cut initiatives, such as Building Schools for the Future, designed to replace run-down school buildings with modern, fit-for-purpose facilities with no risk of asbestos exposure. In Cheshire East, for example, around 90% of schools still contain asbestos. The roving health and safety reps in Cheshire East are working with the local authority to ensure proper, safe management of asbestos. The best solution is for asbestos to be removed from all schools, but where this is not yet possible we must ensure that it is properly managed.

It is important to stress that, according to the HSE, if asbestos is properly managed, and remains undamaged and undisturbed, then its presence alone should not be a cause for concern. This is an important message for school staff, pupils and their families, and councillors.

Parents can support the unions' work by contacting their child's school and asking for information about the management of asbestos. Teachers can do the same, and can ask to see their school's asbestos register, and can ask for asbestos to be put on the agenda of the school health and safety committee. The register should specify all of the places in the school where asbestos is present. This is information to which both parents and teachers are entitled. By raising the issue of asbestos now we are protecting our own health, the health of the children with whom we work, and managers and councils who may otherwise face crippling compensation claims some time in the future.

Resources For Download

• NUT annual report 2011 on health and safety with reference to asbestos campaign
• NUT guidance on asbestos in schools
• HSE – A guide for safety representatives on the Asbestos Regulations 2006
• HSE – Statistics on asbestos related teacher deaths
• HSE – A short guide to managing asbestos in schools
• HSE – Letter to schools
• HSE – A summary report on asbestos management in schools
• Report by Michael Lees on asbestos exposure in schools
• Responses from local authorities to HSE asbestos management questionnaire
• HSE inspection findings by authority on their asbestos management

Links

• Asbestos in Schools Website
• National Union of Teachers asbestos news and guidance pages
• Health and Safety Executive asbestos pages
• Asbestos Information Center website
• Industry Today asbestos article

Campaign Ideas And Support

1. Direct negotiations with local authorities. The judgment in Knowsley means the LA is responsible for the safe management of asbestos. Large numbers of adults may die due to asbestos exposure, and so the authority need to manage this substance carefully. Ask for the LA's policy on asbestos management. Have they identified schools at risk? Are schools aware of what they must do? Do schools have an asbestos register? Ask for asbestos, and how the authority is managing it, to be put on the local authority safety committee agenda.

2. Leafleting. Outline the Knowsley judgment and its implications on a leaflet. Be sure to include action points, e.g. ask readers to join a website e.g. www.protectinglives.co.uk and/ or www.asbestosexposureschools.co.uk, or ask readers to ask if your local school has the necessary asbestos register in place and if it's being used properly.

3. Issue a Press release. Consult the local branch of your union with regard to this. Ensure accuracy and legality. A model press release is available upon request.

4. Contact schools directly. Academy governors are directly liable for negligence in their schools. LA schools are directly liable if they are negligent in not following LA advice and policy. Send schools information about the Knowsley judgment and a questionnaire. Ask if they have an asbestos register. Ask if they are clear about LA policy and advice.