Demolition Asbestos Survey Sheffield — investigate the structure before it is broken apart
Locate hidden ACMs before demolition plant and operatives expose them
A Demolition Survey investigates the defined structure at a much more intrusive level than a Management Survey. It should be planned around what is being demolished and what is retained.
Full demolition
Investigate the structure comprehensively before complete demolition begins.
Partial demolition
Define demolition and retained boundaries so the survey matches the actual work.
Soft strip / deconstruction
Coordinate survey access with ceilings, floors, services, walls and other elements being stripped.
An old Management Survey is not a demolition clearance document
HSE states that refurbishment or demolition surveys must locate and identify hidden ACMs before structural work begins, and that ACMs should be removed so far as reasonably practicable before major refurbishment or demolition.
See HSE guidance and ASM's national Demolition Survey page.
Useful demolition-survey inputs
- demolition drawings
- retained structures
- soft-strip sequence
- existing asbestos records
- structural information
- services and isolations
- below-ground interfaces
- access and programme constraints
Survey → scope asbestos work → complete controls → proceed with demolition
Define the boundary
Confirm exactly what is being demolished and what remains.
Investigate intrusively
Open the relevant building fabric under controlled survey arrangements.
Deal with ACMs
Plan removal or required controls before demolition disturbs the materials.
Provide project information
Use the report and completion records as part of pre-construction information.
Connect asbestos findings to the demolition programme
Use the survey evidence to define the removal, analytical and ground-risk workstreams before the programme moves on.
Removal scope
Price known ACMs against the actual demolition survey findings rather than generic allowances.
Removal cost
Use Sheffield guide prices for early budgeting, then obtain a fixed scope-based quotation.
Air monitoring / clearance
Book analytical support before the demolition programme relies on an enclosure handback date.
Below the slab
A building Demolition Survey does not automatically clear made ground or previous demolition fill beneath the structure.
Pre-demolition surveys for redevelopment, industrial sites and constrained urban projects
Darnall, Neepsend & former industrial land
Older warehouses, workshops and development plots can combine standing-building asbestos with demolition fill or made-ground concerns that need separate but coordinated workstreams.
Constrained city sites
Shared walls, retained façades, neighbouring occupation, restricted loading and structural hazards can affect the destructive survey sequence and areas that can be opened safely.
Soft strip & major internal demolition
Where the shell remains but ceilings, floors, partitions, M&E and plant are removed, the survey boundary should match the full depth of the strip-out rather than the label attached to the project.
Pre-demolition surveys for constrained urban sites, estate regeneration and former industrial property
Neepsend and Attercliffe, Attercliffe & East Sheffield
Warehouses, former industrial buildings and redevelopment sites can combine standing-building asbestos with demolition fill or made-ground concerns that need separate but coordinated workstreams.
Sheffield City Centre constraints
Party walls, retained façades, neighbouring occupation, basement structures, loading restrictions and structural hazards can affect how destructive inspection is planned and sequenced.
Soft strip & major internal demolition
Where the shell remains but ceilings, floors, partitions, M&E and plant are stripped out, the survey boundary should match the actual depth of demolition rather than the project label.
Pre-demolition surveys for urban regeneration, industrial sites and major strip-out
Neepsend, Attercliffe & inner-city redevelopment
Former workshops, warehouses and commercial buildings can combine standing-building asbestos with historic demolition material or made ground that requires a separate contaminated-land strategy.
Lower Don Valley, Tinsley & industrial sites
Large factories, depots, workshops and service structures can contain asbestos across roofs, cladding, fire protection, plant, ducts and offices added over several decades.
Soft strip & partial demolition
Where façades or structural shells are retained, the survey should still investigate every ceiling, floor, wall, riser, service route and plant element that the strip-out will disturb.
Pre-demolition surveys for steel-city industrial buildings, regeneration and major strip-out
Kelham Island, Neepsend & Lower Don Valley
Older workshops, engineering buildings and warehouses can contain asbestos in roofs, wall panels, fire protection, services, plant and later office additions that need resolving before demolition.
Attercliffe & Darnall redevelopment
Previously developed industrial land can combine standing-building asbestos with demolition debris or made ground, so building asbestos and contaminated-land risks should be planned as separate but connected workstreams.
Soft strip & partial demolition
Where façades, frames or adjoining structures remain, the survey should still investigate every building element the demolition sequence will disturb.
Sheffield and South Yorkshire support through ASM's local Sheffield Leeds regional office
ASM supports projects throughout Sheffield, South Yorkshire and wider South Yorkshire and the South East through its Leeds regional office, led by the Leeds regional office team. UKAS-accredited bulk sample analysis is undertaken at ASM's Sunderland headquarters laboratory within the applicable accredited scope.
ASM Leeds Regional Office
Ground Floor
Radley House
Richardshaw Road
Pudsey, Leeds
LS28 6LE
Sheffield & South Yorkshire:
0113 532 7195
Survey:
survey@asbestosSM.co.uk
Monday–Friday
08:00–18:00
UKAS Accreditation No. 32982
Sheffield and South Yorkshire coverage
Sheffield City Centre, Kelham Island, Neepsend, Hillsborough, Walkley, Crookes, Broomhill, Ecclesall, Nether Edge, Sharrow, Heeley, Meersbrook, Woodseats, Darnall, Attercliffe, Handsworth, Gleadless, Manor, Wincobank, Chapeltown, Stocksbridge, Mosborough and Crystal Peaks, with wider attendance across Rotherham, Barnsley, Doncaster, Chesterfield, Worksop and South Yorkshire.
Attendance is subject to project requirements, scope, access and availability.
ASM holds UKAS accreditation number 32982 for defined asbestos inspection activities to ISO/IEC 17020. Removal and demolition activities themselves are not described as UKAS-accredited services.
Sheffield services connected to demolition
Connect the pre-demolition survey to removal, analytical support, contaminated-land work and wider redevelopment information.
Sheffield & South Yorkshire FAQs
When is a Demolition Asbestos Survey required?
It is used before full or partial demolition where the asbestos information needs to cover the structure being broken apart.
Can a Management Survey be used before demolition?
No. A Management Survey is not a substitute for the intrusive asbestos information required for the demolition boundary.
Does a Demolition Survey involve destructive inspection?
Yes. It is highly intrusive because hidden ACMs need to be investigated before structural demolition exposes them.
What happens if asbestos is found?
The findings are used to define removal or other required controls before demolition disturbs the ACMs.
Does the survey include asbestos in soil?
Not automatically. Made ground and buried demolition materials require separate contaminated-land consideration.
Define the demolition boundary before the destructive survey starts
Send drawings, demolition scope, retained structures, soft-strip sequence, existing asbestos information, isolation constraints and programme. ASM can prepare the intrusive survey scope and written quotation.

