HSE guidance · HSG227
A Comprehensive Guide to Managing Asbestos in Premises (HSG227)
HSG264 tells the surveyor how to find asbestos. HSG227 tells the dutyholder what to do with the answer. It is the manual for the working life of the asbestos register — from first entry to reinspection to remediation.
Health and Safety Executive · First edition, 2002 (reprinted 2011) · Status: Current
Scope
What it covers.
Priority assessment methodology, management plan content, register structure, communication with occupants and contractors, reinspection intervals, remedial action prioritisation, and the interaction of the register with tenant works, refurbishment and change of use.
Who it applies to
- Every dutyholder under Reg 4 — freeholders, managing agents, occupiers, FMs
- Consultants writing management plans on behalf of dutyholders
- Enforcing authorities auditing duty-to-manage compliance
Key provisions
The duties, provision by provision.
Complements HSG264 material assessment with a dutyholder-scored priority assessment
Four axes — normal occupant activity, likelihood of disturbance, human exposure potential and maintenance activity — scored and summed to a total that combines with the material score to give the overall risk rating.
Prescribes the minimum content of a written management plan
Named dutyholder, register access route, planned actions, reinspection cycle, contractor briefing procedure, emergency response, review cycle and change-of-circumstances trigger.
Sets baseline reinspection intervals
Twelve months is the standard baseline; step down to six months for any ACM in poor condition, in a high-traffic area or subject to planned works within 12 months.
Requires the register to be available to anyone likely to disturb it
Contractors, tradespeople and emergency responders must be able to access the register at short notice — paper copy on site, CAFM extract or QR-code link on plant-room door.
In practice
How we apply it.
- Every survey report is issued with a HSG227-compliant priority assessment appended to each material entry.
- Management plan drafting is included in our Management Plans service — with an annual review cycle built into the retainer.
- Reinspection scheduling is calendarised in the register itself so the CAFM triggers the appointment automatically.
FAQs
Common follow-up questions.
Is a priority assessment mandatory?
HSG264 makes it optional but recommended; HSG227 makes it the practical basis of the management plan. In practice, an inspector will expect to see one.
Who scores the priority assessment — surveyor or dutyholder?
The dutyholder, because only they know occupant activity, disturbance likelihood and maintenance frequency. In practice, most consultancies score it collaboratively on the surveyor's site visit and hand over an editable version.
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