If you were a commercial building manager, what would your reaction be if you found out you had a killer hidden in your building. You discover the killer has a lethal reputation. He or she’s a mass murderer and he’s very cunning because he knows how to hide behind the most innocent of disguises. If any of your tenants disturbs him in one of his hiding places, he’s more than likely to strike. So what is your course of action? Now, what if that killer was asbestos?
The Duty to Manage
Asbestos is a killer and it is still found in many buildings throughout the UK. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) points out that if you own or have responsibility for, or control of, a building, then you have a duty to manage it.
The problem, though, is one of awareness. Gemma Voaden, Surveying Director at All Survey in Manchester, specialises in asbestos surveys. She comments on how there is an apparent lack of awareness of just how prevalent it is in buildings.
“I have actually heard someone say that asbestos doesn’t exist anymore. I think there is a perception that it is somehow a problem from the past and no longer relevant”
Gemma Voaden
Building managers need to be aware that they have a legal requirement to comply with asbestos legislation,” Gemma explains.
Although this legislation has been in place since 2006, it is often only brought to light after the fact, in those unfortunate situations where it has caused serious, and terminal, illness.
Asbestos Issues
Gemma is beginning a campaign for a National Asbestos Register. The aim is to raise awareness of the issues around it and to make it easier for building managers to take immediate action.
Asbestos causes lung diseases and it kills around 5,000 workers a year in the UK. Whether it is blue, brown or white, it is potentially deadly.
“There is no safe kind of asbestos despite what some people may think. And it can be concealed in all sorts of places, from ceiling tiles to cupboard interiors. If damaged or disturbed, or removed without proper safeguards, the fibres can get into people’s lungs”
Gemma Voaden
It is a legal requirement for asbestos surveys to be carried out, and there are stiff legal penalties for non-compliance.
All Survey thinks the best way forward is to co-ordinate efforts nationally to increase people’s awareness of asbestos and their own responsibilities.
“We want practical solutions that will help us in our work,” Gemma states. “We’re saving time and money but, more importantly, lives.”
If you would like to ensure that your tenants are protected from this hidden killer, please call 0161 628 2555 or visit
To discover more about – and to sign – Gemma’s petition, to enforce a National Asbestos Register, please click here
