Hidden asbestos remains unidentified in school buildings
Leeds 20 January 2011 – A solicitor whose firm recovered over £1m in injury compensation for educators last year has hit out at the coalition government’s failure to properly audit the condition of asbestos in schools nationwide, much of which remains hidden and poses an unacceptable risk to teachers and pupils.
Julie Winn, a Morley resident and Partner at Leeds-based Morrish Solicitors, was recently elected unopposed to chair the Joint Union Asbestos Committee, a national asbestos watchdog comprising the six major teaching unions and teaching sections of the four major national trade unions.
In a statement from the firm, released earlier today, Winn said “Against a background of schools being allowed to fall into disrepair with the promise of rebuilding under the previous Government Building Schools for the Future (BSF), the Coalitions withdrawal of BFS and the failure to commit to a national audit of the condition of asbestos in our dilapidated schools, what prospects is there for a safe workplace for teachers – what is the prospect for children learning in such conditions?”
Statistics show that Britain has the world’s highest incidence of mesothelioma – the deadly cancer caused by exposure to asbestos – at a rate that is almost double that of the United States.
In 2010 alone Morrish Solicitors recovered more than £1m in compensation for members of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, a major national education union. The total includes a six figure settlement for an educator who had contracted mesothelioma through exposure to asbestos at work.
There are a number of ongoing campaigns from unions and the independent body Asbestos in Schools, to raise awareness of the hazards of asbestos in school buildings.
The full statement from Morrish Solicitors appears below:
Lord Young reports that class rooms are low risk workplaces . Nick Gibb – “that around 70% of school buildings contain asbesto\” but that his Department “has no plans for assessing the asbestos risks in schools.”
The HSE seem to suggest that a simple on-line risk assessment form is all that is needed to protect teachers in the work place.
Morrish Solicitors begs to differ.
The Young report fails to address the fact that Britain has the highest incidence of mesothelioma in the world and ignores the presence of asbestos in 70% of schools. The risk to children from long term daily exposure to low levels of asbestos fibres has not been assessed.
Over £1m was recovered in compensation for ATL members in 2010. Within that figure was a six figure recovery for a victim of mesothelioma – a fatal cancer cause by exposure to asbestos in school.
Against a background of schools being allowed to fall into disrepair with the promise of rebuilding under the previous Government Building Schools for the Future (BSF), the Coalitions withdrawal of BFS and the failure to commit to a national audit of the condition of asbestos in our dilapidated schools what prospects is there for a safe workplace for teachers – what is the prospect for children learning in such conditions?
The Coalition Government encourages schools to opt out of local authority control. Consequently many schools face the risk of being handed over with only \”management\” level 1 and level 2 asbestos surveys, so that any hidden asbestos will not have been identified.
Consequently their new owners will be unaware of the full extent of asbestos within their buildings. Although the governors will often lack asbestos awareness, they will have legal responsibility for managing the asbestos and ensuring the safety of the occupants.
The Asbestos in Schools campaign group will continue its campaign to make United Kingdom schools safe from the dangers of asbestos both for staff and pupils and Morrish will continue to fight for the rights of victims injured in schools due to failure to manage health and safety but when will common sense prevail and prevention become a priority for those involved?
