Asbestos remains a serious danger to millions of people in the UK so it’s vital people likely to come into contact with it know the dangers.

The non-profit UK Asbestos Training Association (UKATA) – the largest in the country which sets the highest standards – is dedicated to saving lives from asbestos and has trusted training companies that now do an asbestos awareness course for just £25 per person.

Asbestos is usually all right if left alone, but once disturbed or damaged it will send microscopic asbestos fibres into the air which are potentially dangerous if breathed in, leading to asbestos-related conditions later in life. This is why anyone likely to come into contact with asbestos needs to know how to recognise it and what to do should it be disturbed which is why the asbestos awareness courses are so important.

One of its leading asbestos awareness training members in the north of England is the Aven Partnership based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, which trains huge organisations such as local councils down to small and medium businesses.

According to the Health and Safety Executive in the UK, asbestos can potentially be found in any building constructed before the year 2000.

A UKATA spokesman said: “Anyone likely to disturb asbestos during their work must receive the correct level of training, keeping themselves and others safe. It’s the law. Asbestos was used in more than 4,000 products and still remains in more than 1.5 million buildings in the UK.

“Sadly, exposure to asbestos kills more than 5,000 people in the UK each year which is why its vital that anyone likely to come into contact with it has gone through out asbestos awareness course.”

Aven Training director Nigel Chilvers said: “It’s amazing how many people potentially do come into contact with asbestos during their normal working lives so it’s crucial they know what it looks like and what to do next. The course is just four hours long but the advice is something that will stay with people throughout their working lives and, hopefully, will keep them safe.

“We do the course face-to-face with groups of people as we think that’s a far more powerful and memorable way to do it than online. People tend to remember it far better than if it’s just another online course.”

The course provides guides on how to avoid exposure to asbestos and outlines how to identify those materials that may contain asbestos and where they might be found.

The working people who should do the asbestos awareness course with Aven Training include:

General maintenance workers

Facilities managers and staff

Cleaners

Electricians

Plumbers

Joiners

Painters and decorators 

Plasterers

Construction workers

Roofers

Shop fitters

Gas fitters

Heating and ventilation engineers

Demolition workers

Telecommunication engineers

Fire/burglar alarm installers

Computer and data installers

Architects

Building surveyors

What the UKATA Asbestos Awareness Course Covers

• The properties of asbestos and how to recognise it.
• The effects asbestos exposure can have on health. This includes the increased risk of developing lung cancer for workers who smoke.
• The types, uses and likely occurrence of asbestos and asbestos materials in buildings.
• How to avoid the risk of exposure to asbestos by following the control measures that are in place to manage this.
• The general procedures that you must follow to deal with an emergency. For example, in response to an uncontrolled release of asbestos dust into the workplace.

To organise a UKATA Asbestos Awareness Course with Aven Training contact Nigel Chilvers on 07779 982188 or email nchilvers@aventraining.com