Management Asbestos Survey Durham — information for occupation, maintenance and the asbestos register
A Management Asbestos Survey is used to locate and assess asbestos-containing materials, or materials presumed to contain asbestos, that could be disturbed during normal occupation, routine maintenance and foreseeable activity. It is not a substitute for an intrusive refurbishment or demolition survey.
What a Management Survey should help the dutyholder do
The report is an evidence source for ongoing management. The dutyholder still needs arrangements to record, communicate, review and control asbestos risk after the survey is complete.
Identify relevant ACMs
Inspect accessible areas within the agreed management scope and record identified or presumed asbestos-containing materials.
Management planningRecord condition & vulnerability
Capture the condition and material information needed to support prioritisation, labelling, protection, repair, restriction or other management actions.
Reinspection routeSupport the asbestos register
Provide structured information that can be made available to maintenance teams, contractors and others who may disturb the building fabric.
Register & planRecognise project boundaries
Where planned work becomes intrusive, review the existing information against the work scope and arrange a Refurbishment or Demolition Survey where required.
Refurbishment surveyTypical Durham Management Survey settings
The survey scope should reflect how the property is occupied and maintained, including areas that contractors are reasonably likely to enter during foreseeable work.
Commercial & landlord property
Offices, retail, communal residential areas, mixed-use buildings and managed portfolios may need information covering plant rooms, service risers, common areas, stores, roofs and other maintenance-access zones.
Schools, healthcare & public buildings
Occupied sensitive estates benefit from planned access, coordination with facilities teams and a clear method for passing register information to in-house maintenance staff and contractors.
Industrial & workshop premises
Older industrial property can contain several material types across plant, fire protection, roofs, services and ancillary buildings. The survey brief should identify operational restrictions and high-level access needs.
Historic or altered buildings
Properties with repeated extensions, conversions and refurbishments can contain multiple construction phases. Existing records, plans and previous survey data should be made available before attendance.
A clear Durham project route
Give the team enough information to define the correct scope before attendance or pricing. That reduces duplicated surveys, unclear exclusions and delays when work starts.
Tell us the decision
Occupation, one suspect material, refurbishment, demolition, confirmed asbestos, air evidence or ground disturbance.
Send the evidence
Address, photographs, plans, previous reports, dimensions, proposed works, access limits and required dates.
Confirm the scope
Receive a written quotation describing inclusions, assumptions, access, analytical needs, outputs and exclusions.
Use the result
Manage, design, tender, remove, remediate or progress the next controlled project stage using the resulting evidence.
Durham support coordinated through ASM’s Sunderland headquarters
Durham projects are delivered by ASM’s North East team and coordinated through the Sunderland headquarters. UKAS-accredited bulk-analysis laboratory services are based at Sunderland HQ; there is no separate Durham laboratory.
ASM Sunderland Headquarters
9 Defender Court
Sunderland Enterprise Park
Sunderland
SR5 3PE
Monday–Friday · 08:00–18:00
UKAS accreditation no. 32982
Durham & County Durham coverage
Durham City Centre, Gilesgate, Belmont, Framwellgate Moor, Newton Hall, Neville’s Cross, Shincliffe, Bowburn, Coxhoe, Brandon, Meadowfield, Langley Moor, Chester-le-Street, Stanley, Consett, Crook, Willington, Spennymoor, Bishop Auckland, Newton Aycliffe, Seaham, Peterlee, Barnard Castle and wider County Durham.
Attendance is subject to the project scope, access, programme and team availability.
National Management Survey guide →Related Durham routes
Use the specialist page that matches the next decision: survey, sample, test, manage, remove, monitor or remediate.
Management survey FAQs — Durham & County Durham
Concise answers to the questions most likely to affect the customer’s next decision.
Is a Management Asbestos Survey a legal requirement?
Regulation 4 requires relevant dutyholders to take reasonable steps to determine whether asbestos is present in non-domestic premises, identify its location and condition and manage the resulting risk. A competent Management Survey is commonly used to obtain this information where adequate records are not already available.
Can a Management Survey cover refurbishment work?
Not automatically. A Management Survey is designed for normal occupation and foreseeable maintenance. Intrusive refurbishment may require a Refurbishment Survey covering the exact building fabric that will be disturbed.
Does finding asbestos mean it must be removed?
No. Material in good condition that is unlikely to be disturbed can often be managed in place. Repair, encapsulation, protection, restricted access or removal may be appropriate depending on the risk and future work.
How often should known asbestos be checked?
Monitoring frequency should be risk based, taking account of material condition, accessibility and likelihood of disturbance. The wider asbestos management arrangements should also be reviewed when circumstances change.
Send the Durham project details
Provide the full address or postcode, property or site type, reason for the enquiry, proposed works, existing asbestos information, photographs or drawings where available, access restrictions and required dates.