UNISON warning over asbestos in schools

At a meeting with Lord Hill, schools minister, today (14 Oct) UNISON, the UK's leading public sector trade union, reiterated its call for urgent action on dangerous asbestos in schools.Estimates vary, but more than 14,000 schools in the UK are thought to contain asbestos*. Over time, and without proper management, the safety of asbestos declines, and dangerous levels have been recorded during daily events, such as when children slam classroom doors.The withdrawal of Building Schools for the Future (BSF) funds has condemned many teachers, children and support staff to learn and work in buildings riddled with asbestos for even longer.UNISON is also lending its support to Waltham Forest Council, who had BSF funding for four schools containing asbestos cancelled, and is seeking judicial review to challenge the decision.Dave Prentis, General Secretary of UNISON, the UK's largest public sector union, said:"UNISON welcomes Lord Hill‚s recognition of the need to tackle this problem urgently. We look forward to working with him to getting to grips with the true extent of the problem, by playing our part in the joint working group due to start next month.“Put simply, there should be no place for asbestos in our schools. Children, staff and parents should have the right to know they are learning in a safe and healthy environment. But asbestos - especially without proper management - is anything but safe."It is vital that the Government recognises that asbestos in schools is a health hazard and that they should take urgent action to have it removed, and make sure it is properly managed. "With more schools being taken out of local authority control, UNISON is deeply concerned that standards of asbestos management - which are already seriously failing - will decline even further. Schools will not get the help they need to deal with this dangerous problem, and this will sadly lead only to a more children and staff losing their lives."The safety of students and staff should be paramount. Asbestos claims many lives every year, but it is often many years later that the consequences of exposure become clear. UNISON will continue to campaign hard to rid our schools of this hidden danger."Earlier this week, the joint-union campaign got a boost from the Chairman of the United Asbestos Training Association, who expressed serious concern over asbestos management in schools, including training for staff. UNISON and the other education unions will be launching a major survey of asbestos in schools in October.