Asbestos Removal in Newcastle and Tyne and Wear

Found asbestos in Newcastle? Do this before you ring anyone

Newcastle has a housing type you do not get in many other cities. Tyneside flats, the two storey pairs with their own front doors built before the First World War, run through Heaton, Jesmond, Byker and the west end in their thousands. Asbestos rarely came with the original build in those, it came with later work: textured ceilings, floor tiles, boiler flues and garage roofs added in the sixties and seventies. The post war estates and the high rise 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 Tyne and Wear

There are eleven firms holding a licence here. The trade association directory most people land on shows fewer, because you only appear there if you pay a membership. Neither list is wrong. One is just longer.

9 of the 11 hold a standard licence, and that is the type that covers removal.

Three things on the Tyne and Wear list worth knowing

• The list is spread across the whole conurbation rather than concentrated in Newcastle. You will find four registered in Newcastle upon Tyne, two in South Shields, two in Sunderland, and one each in Hebburn, Jarrow and Washington. Anywhere on Tyneside or Wearside you have several firms within half an hour, which is better coverage than most counties of this size.
• Not every firm here does full removal. One firm here holds a scaffolding licence, not a removal one: MTL Scaffolding Limited in Newcastle Upon Tyne. 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: SMH Products Limited in South Shields. A maintenance licence is narrower, covering short duration maintenance rather than full removal, so ask directly whether your job falls inside it.

Getting rid of small amounts in Newcastle: the tip will not take it

This is where Newcastle differs from most of the country, and it is worth knowing before you load the car. Newcastle City Council says asbestos is not accepted at any of its Household Waste and Recycling Centres. Not in small amounts, not double bagged, not at any site.

The council’s own instruction is to contact a specialist private contractor to arrange removal and disposal safely. It also says the contractor should be registered with the Environment Agency and hold the right paperwork, and that the work needs proper controls and training.

So in Newcastle there is no free small amounts route. Even a single garage roof sheet is a contractor job, or at least a job for a waste carrier who will take it. That pushes the cost of small jobs up compared with Sheffield or Derby, where the council tips take a few sheets a year.

Landlords: Newcastle licenses more property than most cities

If you let property in Newcastle, a licence condition is often what brings asbestos to your attention, because the council inspects licensed properties.

• Additional HMO licensing covers the whole city. It applies to smaller houses in multiple occupation, which the council describes as properties occupied by three or more people in two or more households who share or lack facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom. The current designation runs from April 2025.
• Selective licensing applies in named areas only, and the map is changing. The scheme covering Byker Old Town and Greater High Cross runs to October 2026. A separate scheme from April 2025 covers Cowgate, West End Terraces, Howdene Road, part of Howlett Hall Road, Ravenburn Gardens and part of Swinley Gardens in Benwell, along with Lemington, Denton Court and Columbia Grange. A further scheme covering Byker and High Cross is due to start in October 2026.
• Mandatory HMO licensing applies as it does everywhere for larger houses in multiple occupation.

The boundaries and the dates move, and fees are published separately, so check your own address against Newcastle City Council’s current scheme pages rather than assuming from a street name.

The North East has the highest mesothelioma rate in Britain

This is the reason asbestos is taken more seriously here than in most places, and it is worth knowing before you decide to have a go at something yourself.

• North East: 72.6 deaths per million, the highest of any region in Great Britain
• Great Britain as a whole: 55.9

The reason is Tyneside industry. Shipbuilding, ship repair and heavy engineering used asbestos in enormous quantities, and the men who worked in it are the generation now showing up in those figures.

What has changed is who is at risk now. The HSE says the people most at risk today are those who worked in the building trades when asbestos was still in use: carpenters, plumbers and electricians rather than shipyard workers. The exposure that matters now is somebody cutting into a ceiling or a boiler cupboard without knowing what is in it.

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

What asbestos removal in Newcastle is likely to cost

Newcastle sits below the national average on labour, so expect prices under the London and South East figures. Two local things push in the other direction. There is no council tip route, so disposal is always a paid line on the quote. And access to Tyneside flats, with their shared stairs, back lanes and upper floor entrances, takes longer than a detached house with a drive.

Asbestos removal in Newcastle: questions people ask

Can I take asbestos to the tip in Newcastle?

No. The council states that asbestos is not accepted at any of its Household Waste and Recycling Centres, and tells residents to use a specialist private contractor instead.

Will the council remove asbestos from my house?

No. Newcastle City Council does not offer removal to homeowners. Council tenants should go through their landlord rather than arranging anything privately.

Am I allowed to remove asbestos cement myself?

The law does not forbid a homeowner removing lower risk asbestos cement in good condition. The practical problem in Newcastle is disposal, because the tips will not accept it, so you would still need a licensed contractor or a waste carrier to take it away. Get the material identified first.

Do I need a survey before removal?

For a domestic job, usually not. What you need is identification, which means a sample tested at a laboratory. Surveys are a commercial requirement, most often before refurbishment or demolition. Our guide to what an asbestos survey costs explains which type of survey applies.

How many licensed contractors are near me?

11 hold a current licence with a Tyne and Wear address. Firms based in Northumberland, County Durham and Cleveland also work across Tyneside, so your real choice is wider than the table.

Getting a quote from a Newcastle contractor

Check that each quote states the licence number, whether the waste is taken away and disposed of, whether a clearance certificate is included where one is needed, and whether the price is fixed or an estimate. In Newcastle the disposal line matters more than it does elsewhere, because there is no tip route to fall back on.

Council rules and licensing boundaries change, so check the current position with Newcastle City Council before relying on any of this, including ours.

Firms in the neighbouring counties quote for this work routinely. If you want to widen the field, see the licensed contractors covering Middlesbrough and Cleveland.

Not in Newcastle? See every area we cover.