HSE produces guidance for work with asbestos-containing textured coatings

Published on Thu 21 Jun 2007

The HSE has produced new task guidance sheets for work on textured decorative coatings containing asbestos.

These sheets cover such work as drilling and boring, inserting and removing screws, removal from a small area and how to remove debris following a ceiling or wall collapse.

The HSE also produces guidance sheets covering other non-licensed asbestos work, such as working with asbestos cement or insulating board.

In the past, only those people who held a relevant licence could carry out work involving textured asbestos coatings. However, the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2006, which came into force in November last year, changed this.

One of the aims of the Regulations was to adopt a risk-based approach to licensing. It was decided that certain types of work where exposure to asbestos is considered to be 'sporadic and low intensity', and where it falls below the control limit, would no longer need to be done by a licensed contractor.

When defending its decision the HSE pointed to research that shows the risk from asbestos-containing textured decorative coatings is comparable to the risks from work with asbestos cement, something that already did not require a licence.

However, the decision to allow unlicensed contractors to remove textured coatings proved contentious with some groups, including the Construction Safety Campaign, the Hazards Campaign and the Asbestos Removal Contractors Association (ARCA), who all voiced serious concerns.

Due to the concerns expressed, the HSE commissioned the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) to carry out further research into work with textured coatings, and the dangers this held.

This research confirmed that the risks from asbestos containing textured coatings are much lower than had been previously thought, and the HSE went ahead with the proposed change.

The task guidance sheets can be found at: www.hse.gov.uk.