School Asbestos Work Permit and Contractor Control Procedure

This procedure applies where school-controlled construction, refurbishment, demolition, maintenance or repair work may disturb the building fabric or asbestos materials. The controls must be proportionate to the work and to the asbestos information available.

1. Determine whether asbestos may be disturbed

Before authorising work, the school commissioning lead must determine whether the planned work may disturb the building fabric or any known, presumed, hidden or unidentified asbestos materials. Record the determination for [project or work order reference].

If the work may disturb the building fabric, arrange a relevant refurbishment or demolition survey before the work proceeds. The survey must be carried out by a trained specialist and must use destructive inspection where necessary to identify asbestos materials.

If the available asbestos information is not sufficient to determine the risk or to control the proposed work, do not authorise the work until the required information has been obtained.

2. Provide asbestos information

Before work starts, pass the findings of the relevant survey and details of all known or presumed asbestos materials in the work area to the designers and to the people who will carry out the work.

The school commissioning lead must record when the information was provided, the work area covered and the recipients, including [designer or contractor recipients].

3. Check the work method and controls

Obtain and review the contractor’s method statement or equivalent work information before issuing permission to work. Confirm that it addresses the asbestos risk identified for the planned activity and that suitable risk control measures will be used.

Use a permit-to-work system where this is the control selected for the activity. The permit must identify the authorised work area, the work to be undertaken, the asbestos information provided, the control measures to be used and the people authorised to undertake the work.

Do not issue the permit where the asbestos information, method statement or control measures are not sufficient for the people undertaking the work to confirm that the work can be controlled.

4. Check contractor competence and licensing

Check that the contractor selected for the work is competent for the planned activity and that the workers have the training appropriate to the work and its controls.

Some small, short-duration tasks may be carried out by non-licensed workers only where they have received appropriate training and the correct risk control measures are used.

Where the work is licensed asbestos work, use a licensed asbestos removal contractor. Record the contractor’s licensing or competence status for [contractor name] before authorisation.

5. Issue and control the permit

Issue the permit only after the asbestos risk has been determined, the required survey information has been provided, the method statement and control measures have been checked, and the contractor competence or licensing check has been completed.

The permit holder must ensure that the work is carried out only within the authorised area and in accordance with the information and control measures provided. The work must not proceed if the information is insufficient or if the agreed controls cannot be used.

Before any permitted work is restarted after an interruption or change, the responsible school representative must confirm that the authorised scope, asbestos information and control measures remain applicable. Where they do not remain applicable, suspend the work and reassess the arrangements before issuing permission to continue.

6. Work completion and changes

If the planned work, work area or suspected asbestos materials differ from the information used to authorise the work, stop the affected activity and obtain confirmation that the information and control measures are sufficient before continuing.

The school commissioning lead must retain the permit and associated work information with the project or work-order record for [record location].