Asbestos Removal in Sheffield and South Yorkshire

Found asbestos in Sheffield? Do this before you ring anyone

Sheffield’s housing runs from Victorian terraces in Walkley and Crookes through to the post war estates and the high rise blocks that went up in the 1960s and 70s. The terraces tend to hide it in textured ceilings and floor tiles from later modernising. The estates and the blocks are where the higher risk materials show up, because insulating board and pipe lagging were standard in that era. Two very different jobs, and the difference decides whether you legally need a licensed firm.

Every HSE licensed asbestos contractor covering South Yorkshire

There are twelve firms holding a licence here. For comparison, the trade association directory most people land on lists seven of them, because you only appear there if you pay a membership. Neither list is wrong. One is just longer.

9 of the 12 hold a standard licence, and that is the type that covers removal. Two firms here hold a scaffolding licence, not a removal one: Rowland Scaffold Co Limited in Sheffield and Trident Scaffolding Limited in Sheffield. A scaffolding licence covers putting up and taking down scaffold around asbestos work, not removing anything, so those are not who you ring about a garage roof. One firm here holds a maintenance licence rather than a standard one: Empire Tapes Ltd in Rotherham. A maintenance licence is narrower, covering short duration maintenance rather than full removal, so ask directly whether your job falls inside it.

Two things on the South Yorkshire list worth knowing

• Eleven firms is not many for a county this size. Expect to wait for the better ones, and expect firms from West Yorkshire and Derbyshire to quote for Sheffield work as well. That is normal and often gets you a keener price.

Not all asbestos work needs a licensed contractor

The council goes further than most and says a homeowner may remove asbestos cement themselves, provided they have had appropriate information, instruction and training. That is a real permission, not a loophole, but read the last three words carefully before you climb on a garage roof.

Getting rid of small amounts in Sheffield

The council does not run an identification or removal service for homeowners, so both are on you. Council tenants are the exception and should go through their Area Housing Office rather than arranging anything privately.

Four recycling centres take asbestos cement: Greaves Lane, Deepcar, Beighton Road and Blackstock Road. It has to be double bagged and taped up before you arrive. Only cement bonded material is accepted, so anything fibrous is a contractor job.

Yorkshire sits above the national mesothelioma rate

Sheffield’s steel and heavy engineering used asbestos for lagging, furnace linings and fire protection, and the men who worked around it are the generation appearing in those figures now. Mesothelioma can take decades to appear, which is why a rate measured today reflects work done in the 1960s and 1970s.

Figures from the HSE’s mesothelioma statistics for Great Britain.

What asbestos removal in Sheffield is likely to cost

Sheffield sits below the national average on labour, so expect prices under the London and South East figures. Where the city adds cost is access. Steep streets, terraced rows with no rear vehicle access, and flats above the fourth floor all add time, and time is what you are paying for.

Asbestos removal in Sheffield: questions people ask

Will the council remove asbestos from my house?

No. Sheffield City Council states plainly that it does not offer asbestos identification or removal to homeowners. Council tenants are different and should contact their Area Housing Office.

Can I take asbestos to the tip in Sheffield?

Yes, cement bonded asbestos only, double bagged and taped, at Greaves Lane, Deepcar, Beighton Road or Blackstock Road. Fibrous material cannot go to a tip.

Am I allowed to remove asbestos cement myself?

The council says you may, if you have had appropriate information, instruction and training. That is the qualifying phrase. Reading a page online is not training.

How many licensed contractors are near me?

12 hold a current licence with a South Yorkshire address. Firms based in West Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire also work across Sheffield, so your real choice is wider than the table.

Getting a quote from a Sheffield contractor

Firms in the neighbouring counties quote for this work routinely. If you want to widen the field, see the licensed contractors covering York and North Yorkshire and Lincoln and Lincolnshire.

Not in Sheffield? See every area we cover.