The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning dutyholders to ensure they take proper precautions when working in buildings where asbestos may be present.

The warning follows an investigation at Woodhouse Close Leisure complex in Bishop Auckland, County Durham.

Wear Valley District Council was fined £18,000 at Darlington Magistrates Court after admitting six offences under the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002. It was also ordered to pay £7,722 costs.

The investigation followed a complaint in January 2006 by a maintenance worker, who discovered that the plant room of the council-run leisure centre where he had worked for many years, contained asbestos.

HM Inspector of Health and Safety, Richard Bishop, said: “A survey had been carried out in 2001 which identified asbestos-containing materials. This information was not acted upon and no one who worked in the plant room was made aware. As a result, work that was liable to disturb the asbestos was done without the necessary precautions required by law to protect their health from exposure.

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“This case should serve as a warning, not only to Local Authorities, but to everyone responsible for carrying out or contracting maintenance work on buildings where asbestos may be present.

"With up to 4,000 deaths per year - that's around 15 times the current rate of fatal accidents at work - asbestos-related diseases are the largest occupational killers in the UK. There is still a legacy of asbestos in buildings that needs addressing. It is estimated that some half a million non-domestic premises contain asbestos of some type. And this means there are still workers putting themselves at risk every day. Recent studies estimate that a quarter of those dying from an asbestos-related disease worked as electricians, plumbers, maintenance workers or builders.

Mr Bishop said: "Where asbestos has been found to be present in buildings, the risk it presents must be evaluated and written plans devised and implemented that specify the steps necessary to address the risk. All work liable to expose people to asbestos must be carefully planned and assessed, with appropriate precautions taken to prevent or reduce exposure and the spread of asbestos."

(JM)