Council asbestos failings prompt £500k repair bill
Cumberland CouncilAsbestos failings at council buildings could cost £500,000 to rectify.
Cumberland Council said it had requested the "contingency funding" to address asbestos concerns raised by inspections of eight of its buildings by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
A report published ahead of a meeting of the council's standards committee on Wednesday showed HSE issued it with an improvement notice for Whitehaven Civic Hall on 20 April. HSE also raised concerns about "other contraventions" at council buildings.
In the document the Labour-led authority said it treated the HSE's notices with the highest importance and was "committed to getting health and safety right".
'Safety improvements'
A council spokesman said the authority was taking "the necessary steps to address the concerns raised by the HSE".
The HSE enforcement notice for Whitehaven Civic Hall said the council had "failed to prepare an adequate written plan" of how it would manage the risk from asbestos likely to be present on the premises.
Failure to comply with the notice is a criminal offence which can result in prosecution and the council has until 24 July to fix issues.
Last month the local authority shut the wedding and entertainment venue without notice to carry out "safety improvements" and said it hoped it would reopen in the summer.
The council confirmed these related to fire management and were separate from the asbestos issues raised by HSE.
The spokesman said: "While the building is closed to carry out the fire safety improvements, the council is taking the opportunity to also address some of the asbestos-related issues on the site."
Fees for action
The council report said HSE visited eight buildings owned or managed by the council including Netherhall School in Maryport, the civic centre in Carlisle and Ashfield Junior School and the Helena Thompson Museum in Workington.
A Notice of Contravention (NOC) letter was issued by HSE, setting out "other matters which were found by the inspectors at the various sites" and giving advice to address these.
The council did not publish details of the improvements needed, saying they were exempt from being made public because they concerned financial information.
The report said while the NOC was not a prosecution, it marked "the start of formal enforcement action".
It added: "It also triggers fee for intervention charges, meaning a business will be invoiced for the time the HSE spends dealing with the issue.
"There is a risk that further inspections may be required by the HSE and this may increase the fee for intervention that the council will be required to pay."
The council said it was working on a plan to comply with the recommendations.
The report said: "The council is treating the recommendations in the letter with the highest importance and is developing an action plan overseen by the internal board."
