National Asbestos Taskforce Urges Education Secretary To Prioritise Asbestos Removal From Schools

CWU is part of the taskforce with Jamie McGovern leading

 

Here, Derek Maylor, CWU Retired Member Gter Merseyside Amal Branch and trustess of Merseyside Asbestos Victims Support Group; report on a taskforce which includes CWU's Jamie McGovern, the Union's Health & Safety Policy Adviser; following letters being sent to the PM and the Secretary of State for Education:

The National Asbestos Taskforce has written to Education Secretary Lucy Powell MP, calling on the Department for Education to treat the removal of asbestos from school buildings with the same urgency the government has shown for RAAC (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete).

In a letter dated 10 September 2026, the taskforce — a coalition of industry bodies, trade unions, charities and campaign groups formed to eliminate asbestos from the UK's built environment — warned that asbestos remains widespread across the school estate and continues to endanger staff and pupils.

The Spetember letter cites occupational data suggesting female teachers face a mesothelioma death rate roughly five times higher than the general population, with children exposed at school considered to be at even greater long-term risk. It points to England's 8,633 system-built schools, including 1,809 CLASP schools and 4,738 CLASP-type schools — prefabricated buildings with steel-clad columns that were often insulated using asbestos. Many of these structures are now well past their intended lifespan and in deteriorating condition. The Health and Safety Executive advises that those responsible for such buildings should assume asbestos may be present in hidden or inaccessible areas.

Noting the government's decision to prioritise RAAC remediation, the taskforce argues comparable action is needed on asbestos to prevent further exposure. The letter also proposes discussing a national database of asbestos in schools, similar to schemes used in the Netherlands, drawing on analysis work carried out by Asbestos Information CIC.

Signatories include Mark Morrin of ResPublica (secretariat for the taskforce), taskforce chair Chris Emmett, Sarah Lyons of the National Education Union, ASCL general secretary Pepe Di'Iasio, mesothelioma researcher Professor Daniel Murphy, Liz Darlison of Mesothelioma UK, and representatives from ARCA, the Society and College of Radiographers, the Communication Workers Union, and several campaigners and researchers.

The taskforce says it is seeking a meeting with the Education Secretary to discuss a plan for a safer, future-proofed school estate.

An earlier letter dated the 28th July to the Prime Minister, also urged that action be taken on Asbestos contaimantion of public buildings is required as a matter of public health emergency.

Web editor, Chris Ingram adds:

Amongst the members of the Taskforce is Air Tight On Asbestos, a pressure group that has had some impact upon Parliament's Works and Pensions All-party Sub-committee - which held an inquiry into the issue around Asbestos contamination of public buildings and schools. They made a number of important recommendations, including the need for a national database for asbestos records and a plan to remove asbestos from all non-domestic buildings within 40 years.

Unfortunately, the Government has, so far, failed to consider implementing the committee's recommendations.

The campaign group states on their website:

"Airtight on Asbestos is a campaign which aims to improve the UK's approach to the management of asbestos. Exposure to asbestos is the UK's no.1 occupational killer, responsible for more than 10,000 deaths per year - by far the highest asbestos-related death rate in the world. Despite its use having been banned in 1999, asbestos remains in many buildings across the UK including hospitals and schools.

The assumption is that asbestos is a problem belonging to our industrial past. But death rates continue to rise and there is growing evidence that white collar workers, nurses, teachers, and former pupils are being increasingly exposed to this deadly substance. Children are nine times more likely to die from asbestos exposure than adults. And many are being educated in schools riddled with the most toxic forms of asbestos."

Airtight on Asbestos has launched a parliamentary petition to recognise the true number of asbestos deaths in the UK, pointing out that the HSE ignores its own research, as well as the international evidence, informing Government that asbestos kills 5000 when it kills closer to 20,000 of Brits each year. The camaign group says that Asbestos regulation in the UK, is based upon a series of flawed assumptions.

 

They add: "Please sign the petition and circulate it widely. Together we can change UK asbestos policy and bring about its total eradication via a 40-year plan. That asbestos is safe in-situ, is the Biggest Lie In Public Life."

 

You can read and sign the petition by clicking the link to the petition, or by clicking the image to the right above.

 

If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament. The petition will stay open until 22nd November 2026.

Source: Airtight on Asbestos / Chris Ingram / Derek Maylor