Asbestos in schools

A disappointing picture of lack of knowledge and awareness in many areas of asbestos awareness in schools has been revealed in recent surveys.

The Joint Union Asbestos committee (JUAC), which is made up of 10 trade unions in the education sector, and the National Association of Headteachers carried out surveys of their members on asbestos awareness in schools as part of a Department for Education policy review.

The majority of the 1,300 responses from the JUAC survey were teaching assistants which was indicative of high levels of concern among this group of staff. The results showed that over two in five (43%) of the headteachers, three out of five (59%) of the governing body and the vast majority (90%) of the teaching assistants had not received asbestos training.

The Asbestos in Schools (AIS) pressure group said this was a concern as headteachers and governors have responsibilities for ensuring asbestos is safely managed in schools. And it is teaching assistants that are the very people who are likely to disturb asbestos by displaying the children’s work with staples or drawing pins in asbestos insulation board, hang mobiles and decorations from suspended ceilings or take books out of stationery cupboards.

www.asbestosexposureschools.co.uk