RSK works to secure National Trust properties against asbestos

Project summary

RSK Asbestos worked alongside the National Trust to secure its properties from asbestos contamination, providing a bespoke asbestos management system.

The background

Throughout the 20th century, asbestos cement roofs were wildly popular because they were heat resistant, durable and waterproof. However, later it was discovered that the substance posed a serious health hazard to the inhabitants of those buildings. The National Trust is an organisation that seeks to preserve historic buildings and areas across the UK. Owing to the age of some of these properties, many of them contain asbestos-based roofs.

RSK was contracted to support the asbestos removal efforts in order to ensure the safety of the buildings. It performed type 2 and type 3 surveys for the charity and provided incident-response services during which the substance was found. The services were provided to all National Trust properties in the North West, Thames and Solent regions of England, as well as all of Wales.

The challenges

Number of properties

The trust’s portfolio contains thousands of buildings. These include stately homes, farms, tenanted houses, tea rooms, boat sheds, towers and follies.

Historical preservation

The National Trust’s properties have great historic significance and many of them are listed; some are also inhabited, which posed an issue for gaining access to conduct inspections.

The solutions

RSK developed a bespoke web-based asbestos management system for over 1000 of the trust’s properties. This system contained up-to-date knowledge of the latest survey data for each site, recommendations and timescales for the completion of remedial actions.

The easy-to-use application included features such as a search facility, a calendar for reinspection and remedial actions and a task management tool that inspects data by factors such as action status or risk level. The system functioned via a secure internet connection, which enabled project managers, contractors and any other relevant parties to log in whenever they required to gain accurate, up-to-date information regarding the asbestos present in any National Trust property.

To ensure the security of the historic nature of these buildings, RSK worked extensively to liaise with the trust to gain access. Extreme care and caution were taken when performing surveys and remedial actions in order to achieve the optimal result while preserving the significance of the properties.

The impacts

Working to ensure the National Trust’s buildings are free from asbestos contamination enabled the charity to open the doors of these properties to the general public for education and pleasure. RSK’s bespoke system enabled the tremendous task to be completed in a quicker and much more efficient manner.

Melissa Fox, from the RSK Asbestos team, summarised the project, saying, “Our surveyors work closely with property managers, curators and building surveyors and provide information on the risks and methods of management, all in non-technical language. Their innovative approach to data management and on-site surveys has been welcomed and praised by the National Trust.”