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Schools: Asbestos

Answer

Well-maintained, safe school buildings are a priority for the department to support a high-quality education for all children. The department has allocated over £15 billion since 2015 for keeping schools safe and operational, including £1.8 billion in the 2023/24 financial year. In addition, the School Rebuilding Programme is transforming poor condition buildings at over 500 schools.

​​​It is the responsibility of those who run schools, such as academy trusts, local authorities and voluntary-aided school bodies, to manage the safety and maintenance of their buildings.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regulates schools’ compliance with legislation to manage their asbestos safely. The department follows the HSE’s advice that, provided asbestos containing materials are in good condition, and unlikely to be disturbed, it is generally safest to manage them in place. Where asbestos containing materials are likely to be disturbed by maintenance works or daily use of the building, and cannot be easily protected, schools should have them removed.

The Asbestos Management Assurance Process (AMAP) was a survey launched by the department in March 2018 to understand the steps schools and those responsible for their estate were taking to manage asbestos. The data collected from this survey was published in 2019, and is accessible at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5f28153ed3bf7f1b17facda7/AMAP_Report_2019.pdf.

Information on how schools are managing asbestos is now being collected via the department’s Condition Data Collection 2 (CDC2) programme, which will complete in 2026, and is expected to cover all state-funded schools.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

18438

Session

2023-24

Related items

Schools: Asbestos
Friday, 17 November 2023
Written questions
House of Commons

Subjects

Asbestos Schools North East

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk