Asbestos Surveys
Coordinated UKAS-accredited asbestos surveys for ongoing management, refurbishment and demolition projects, with clear scoping, competent specialist providers and practical reporting. Further guidance on asbestos surveys can be found on the HSE (Health & Safety Executive) website - HSE asbestos survey guidance
Management Surveys
Identify and assess asbestos-containing materials that could be disturbed during normal occupation or routine maintenance.
Refurbishment & Demolition Surveys
Intrusive surveys to identify asbestos-containing materials within areas affected by planned refurbishment or demolition work.
Asbestos Reinspection
Condition checks of known or presumed asbestos-containing materials to help keep asbestos records current and support ongoing compliance.
MANAGEMENT SURVEY
An asbestos management survey is used to locate, as far as reasonably practicable, asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) that could be disturbed during normal occupation, routine maintenance or installation work. It may involve minor intrusive work and records their location, extent and condition so they can be appropriately managed.
Surveys are completed through a UKAS-accredited surveying organisation and include an inspection of accessible internal and external areas within the agreed scope. Representative samples of suspect materials are taken where necessary and analysed by a UKAS-accredited laboratory. Areas that cannot be accessed are clearly recorded and must be presumed to contain asbestos until they can be inspected.
Providing access to all relevant areas of the property will help minimise limitations. A combination of sampling and presuming materials to contain asbestos may be used where appropriate.
Following the survey, you will receive a clear digital report identifying sampled or presumed ACMs, their condition, laboratory results, survey limitations and recommended management actions. This information can then support the property’s asbestos register and management plan.
A management survey is not suitable for intrusive refurbishment or demolition work. Where planned work could disturb concealed parts of the building, a refurbishment and demolition survey may be required.
Refurbishment & Demolition Surveys
Although frequently grouped together as “R&D surveys”, refurbishment and pre-demolition surveys have different purposes and must be scoped accordingly. Both are intrusive surveys that may involve destructive inspection to locate asbestos-containing materials hidden within the building fabric.
REFURBISHMENT SURVEYS
A refurbishment survey is required before work that will disturb the fabric of a building. It is specifically targeted to the areas affected by the proposed work, which could be a single component, part of a room, an entire floor or the whole property. The survey scope must reflect the planned refurbishment in sufficient detail. This may involve opening walls, ceilings, floors, service risers, boxing and other concealed areas that will be disturbed. Unaffected parts of the property do not normally need to be included unless they form part of the agreed works.
PRE-DEMOLITION SURVEYS
A pre-demolition survey is completed before the full or partial demolition of a building or structure. Where an entire building is being demolished, the survey will cover the whole building rather than only selected work areas. This is generally the most extensive and destructive type of asbestos survey. Its purpose is to locate, as far as reasonably practicable, all asbestos-containing materials within the demolition scope, including materials concealed behind finishes and within the structure, so they can be appropriately addressed before demolition begins.
Both survey types are completed through a UKAS-accredited surveying organisation, with samples analysed by a UKAS-accredited laboratory. The surveyed area must be unoccupied and appropriately controlled while intrusive inspection is undertaken. Accurate plans and details of the proposed work should be provided before the survey.
Asbestos reinspection
An asbestos reinspection is a planned condition check of known or presumed asbestos-containing materials recorded within an existing survey or asbestos register. Its purpose is to identify any deterioration or damage and ensure the property’s asbestos information remains current.
HSE guidance recommends reviewing and updating the asbestos register at least annually, supported by regular condition inspections. Annual professional reinspections provide an independent, documented way to support the duty to manage asbestos. Failure to monitor asbestos-containing materials and keep asbestos records current, may result in enforcement action under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR).
Reinspections are completed through a UKAS-accredited surveying organisation. The existing asbestos survey or register is reviewed and each accessible recorded material is checked. The updated report records any changes in condition, photographs, revised assessments and recommended management actions.
A reinspection is primarily visual. However, where an area previously recorded as inaccessible becomes accessible, it should be inspected and any suspect materials sampled where reasonably practicable. This helps keep recorded no-access areas to a minimum and improves the completeness of the asbestos register.
