Online Asbestos Awareness course

This course is an online training course, audited by UKATA, the UK’s most widely recognised independent asbestos training association. It’s a Category A: Asbestos Awareness course which aims to help candidates recognise and understand the risks and dangers they may be exposed to on coming into contact with asbestos.

Is this the right course for me?

If you require asbestos awareness training from a HSE recognised training body, then this course should meet your needs perfectly. On completing the course, you automatically receive an official UKATA certificate that is valid for 12 months. UKATA certificates are the most widely accepted in the construction industry and facilities management sectors.

The HSE and UKATA both recognise online courses as a valid method of training.

Is this a suitable refresher course?

Yes, this course is also a suitable asbestos awareness refresher course.

How many licences do I need?

You need to buy one licence for each person that will take the course. If you have several candidates who need to take the course, you will need to buy a licence for each candidate. Licences are valid indefinitely – they don’t expire – so you can buy a licence now and use it at any point in the future to take the training.

Can I keep track of all my candidates?

Yes, we have a page where you can view all your licences to see who has completed the course, download copies of certificates, and check which licences are still unused.

For further general and technical questions, please take a look at our FAQs page.

More information about this course

This course doesn’t provide training on working with or removing asbestos. For more information about the different categories of training offered, please see below.

Our online course originally went live early in 2014 and is audited annually by UKATA to ensure that it meets their training standards and legal requirements.

The HSE specify that awareness training is required by anyone who is likely to come into contact with asbestos during their work. This also includes people who manage individuals likely to come into contact with asbestos.

You can find out more about the HSE requirements and recommendations from the HSE website.

Course content

Our course is divided into sections plus a multi choice test at the end.

All the content you need to pass the final test is contained in the course itself. You don’t need to do any additional reading or research and you don’t need any prior knowledge. Every page in the course covers a single point or piece of information – when you’ve read and understood it, just click the ‘Next’ button to move on to the next page.

The content is supported by a professionally-voiced narration and by images taken from real-life situations. There are also several interactions during the course to help you with your learning.

The course will remember your progress so it’s possible to take the course in stages – if you need to complete the course over several days, or you just want to have a cup of tea, the course will keep track of your progress. Each section has a very short test at the end – around 3 questions. Once you pass the test, the section will be marked as completed.

When you pass the test at the end, you will automatically and immediately be emailed your certificate. If you don’t pass the test at the first attempt, you can retake it straightaway. In the unlikely event that you fail it again, you will need to redo the course content before being allowed another attempt.

The course will take a minimum of 80 minutes to complete, not including the final test.

Types of training

There are several types of asbestos training and we’ve outlined the main ones below:

Online / Classroom

The first main distinction is between online and classroom (or face to face) training. Online courses, like the one we offer on this website, are taken on computer (or tablet or phone) at the candidate’s own pace. The training can be carried out at home or at a place of work, perhaps on an office computer. Online training should be taken individually – candidates wouldn’t sit together and work through an online course as a group. All the course content would be presented to the candidate via the website

Classroom training is usually conducted in a group with a qualified instructor leading the session. The advantages of learning in a classroom environment are that you have an instructor and other participants to ask questions of and discuss the course content with. The disadvantages of classroom training compared with online courses are generally considered to be cost and time – classroom courses can take longer and cost more.

We also offer classroom training through Bainbridge Asbestos, which is run by Steve Bainbridge. Steve has been providing face to face classroom training since 2002.

Training associations

There are several training associations whose members offer asbestos courses. You should note that at the time of writing, the HSE only list UKATA, IATP and BOHS as recognised training associations. UKATA is often the certificate required by companies within the construction and facilities management industries. If you are in any doubt whether your certificate will be accepted by your employer or a client, you should confirm with them directly.

There are other organisations whose members offer training, such as ROSPA. Certificates obtained from training courses from such organisations may not be as widely accepted but, again, you should confirm with your employer or client.

Some companies who are not members of any training body also offer training. This is often cheaper but will be less widely accepted by employers and clients.

Different categories

As well as awareness training, the HSE identify two further categories of training, namely non-licensable work with asbestos and licensable work with asbestos.

For more information about the different categories of training offered, please see this page.

Legal requirements

There is a legal requirement in the UK, under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, for employers to provide training to employees liable to come into contact with asbestos during their everyday work.

It’s really important to note that if your work is liable to disturb asbestos, not merely encounter it, you will need additional levels of training. Please refer to the HSE for further details.

Why choose us?

We are asbestos training specialists. Through Bainbridge Asbestos, we offer a specialist training and surveying service that benefits from our 30 years’ experience of training – with more than 15 years’ experience in health and safety, particularly in the field of asbestos training and asbestos surveying.

We are not a general safety consultancy and we’re not involved in asbestos removals. This means our training has the quality that only in-depth knowledge of the subject brings.

Purchase a licence

If you would like to buy one or more licences, please select the number below and click the ‘Buy Now’ button.

£20.00


If you have further questions about the course, please take a look at our FAQs page or contact us. In addition, there is more information about the training here.