Government rejects call for national asbestos register in schools, citing “duplication” of work

The cross-party Education Committee was responding yesterday to a government report published to address chronic issues with the state of school buildings in England.

Out of the eight recommendations from the Foundations of learning’: replacing RAAC and securing school buildings report, the call for an asbestos database was the only one MPs rejected.

The Committee of eleven Labour, Lib Dem and Conservative MPs explained: “The existing legal requirement set out in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 requires duty holders to identify and locate asbestos within their premises and share this information with everyone who may possibly, in the course of their work activity, be at risk of exposure to asbestos.”

“This existing information would be duplicated in a new central digital register of asbestos in non-domestic buildings, which would require significant resource from duty holders and government to implement with no clear indicator that asbestos exposure risks would be improved. 

"It could also undermine the active requirement on duty holders to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises on an ongoing basis,” they added. 

MPs did however stress that the government’s long-term goal is to develop an asbestos removal strategy.

Rather than schools, HSE will support this by working up a ‘census’ style survey initially on the scale of asbestos in offices for civil servants, courthouses and laboratories, which are within the central government estate.

The report was seventh in a series written in response to the Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete crisis of 2023.

Thousands of pupils were forced into remote learning, or moved to temporary classrooms in August 2023, when over 100 school buildings were forced to close after HSE said RAAC had "expired" and could collapse.

However, teaching unions have been urging Government to treat asbestos as seriously and urgently as RAAC concrete.

Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the NEU, told the i Paper last year: “It must be remembered that the scourge of asbestos affects thousands, rather than hundreds, of schools, and puts staff and children at risk every day.

“We urgently need to see a similar commitment from Bridget Phillipson to systematically remove asbestos.”

Read the Education Committee's response here