Meyer Southern is an HSE licensed contractor for asbestos removal in West Sussex, so whatever has turned up in your home or business is surveyed, removed and signed off by one team.
Send us a photo on WhatsApp and we can usually tell you straight away whether it needs testing. It is optional, but it speeds things up.
The calls we get from across the county tend to follow a pattern. A bathroom refit in Worthing has stopped because the fitter found boarding behind the old tiles. A buyer’s surveyor in Horsham has flagged the garage roof and the sale is waiting on it. A landlord or business owner has been told to get a survey done before any work starts.
Meyer Southern is fully licensed and insured, holds an HSE asbestos licence and has more than 30 years in the asbestos industry. One team handles the survey, the sampling, the removal and the paperwork, so your job is never handed from one contractor to the next.
Call 0239 307 2182, message us on WhatsApp, or use our enquiry form.
Crawley was made a new town in January 1947, and most of its neighbourhoods went up through the 1950s and 1960s, when asbestos cement was a standard building material. Asbestos cement can be found in homes built between 1945 and 1985, and it is the type we most commonly find in houses, which is why so many of our jobs here are domestic. Along the coast, Worthing, Bognor Regis and Littlehampton mix older seaside property with post-war estates. Further inland, older houses and farm buildings often picked up asbestos through later roofs, garages and extensions. Asbestos was not fully banned in the UK until 1999, so treat any property built before 2000 as a possible source.
In homes, the materials we see most are garage roofs and shed roofs, artex and textured ceilings, floor tiles, insulating board around boilers, water tanks, rainwater goods and flues. West Sussex County Council also flags old storage heaters as a possible source. Most of it is low risk while it stays intact. Asbestos materials become hazardous when they are disturbed or damaged, and drilling, sanding or breaking them releases fibres that can cause asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer. Around 2,500 people die from mesothelioma in the UK each year.
If you think you have found it, our team will confirm what it is before anyone touches it.
Commercial buildings here carry a lot of post-war history. Manor Royal, Crawley’s industrial area, was opened by Princess Elizabeth in 1950 and filled with factories through that decade. Gatwick opened in 1958, when it was still part of Surrey, and offices, warehouses and hotels grew up around it. Add schools, care homes, holiday sites and farm buildings, and a large share of the county’s commercial premises went up while asbestos was in common use.
Asbestos-related diseases cause more work deaths in Britain than anything else, and the HSE estimates around 5,000 asbestos-related deaths a year. The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 place a duty to manage asbestos on whoever is responsible for non-domestic premises, including the shared parts of blocks of flats. That means knowing where the asbestos is, what condition it is in, and having a written plan for it. Our work for commercial premises covers surveys, risk assessments, management plans, removal and disposal, plus air tests and re-inspections.
Tenders and approved contractor lists increasingly ask for an HSE licensed contractor. We hold the licence, send the ASB5 notification for you, and hand over the compliance documentation your file needs.
Asbestos work is split by risk. Asbestos insulating board and pipe lagging are high-risk friable materials, and along with sprayed coatings they can only be removed by a contractor licensed by the HSE. Carrying out that work without a licence is an offence.
Meyer Southern is HSE accredited and holds an HSE asbestos licence. The benefit shows when a job changes part way through. A garage roof in Crawley can turn up insulating board in the soffits, or a ceiling in Chichester can test as AIB rather than plasterboard. You do not need to stop and find a second firm. The same crew carries on under the right controls and with the right paperwork.
Stop work. Do not sweep, vacuum or break anything up. Keep people and pets out, and shut the door on the room.
Then call us on 0239 307 2182. We will talk you through the next step and arrange sampling if it is needed.
Each of these starts with confirming the material and finishes with full documentation. If what you are concerned about is not on this list, ask us. We will tell you whether it needs removing, sealing or leaving where it is.
Our project portfolio shows real jobs from start to finish: the material, the controls we used and the cleared space we handed back.
All asbestos work has to be assessed before it starts. Which category it falls into depends on the material, its condition and what is being done to it, and a visit from our asbestos survey West Sussex team settles it.
| Category | Typical materials | Notice | Who can do it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licensed | AIB, pipe lagging, sprayed coatings, loose-fill insulation | ASB5 to the HSE, 14 days before work starts | HSE licensed contractor only |
| Notifiable non-licensed | Damaged asbestos cement, some textured coatings | Notified to the enforcing authority before work | Trained contractor with medicals and records |
| Non-licensed | Intact cement roof sheets, floor tiles | None | Trained contractor |
Lower-risk asbestos materials can often be handled without a licence, under strict precautions. The reason to use a licensed firm anyway is that the job keeps moving if the survey finds something worse. Some materials do not need removing at all, and encapsulation can be the safer and cheaper option.
Homeowners should check that any contractor holds the right HSE licence for the work. The HSE publishes a list of licensed asbestos contractors showing each company’s licence number, licence type and expiry date. Check anyone you are thinking of using, including us. Our licence number is 262606126.
Then look at the quote. A good one is fixed and in writing. It names the survey, risk assessment, method statement, sampling and air tests, how the waste will be disposed of, and the consignment notes you will get. If something is missing, ask why.
Photos from recent jobs, showing the enclosures, protective equipment and clean-down on real sites.
We bring the same expertise to a single shed roof as to a full school strip-out, on domestic and commercial sites alike. Schools, care settings and commercial buildings often contain licensed materials like AIB and lagging, which means an HSE licensed contractor has to be booked before any planned work begins.
Call 0239 307 2182, message us on WhatsApp or send an online enquiry and our team will come back to you.
Every job follows the same order, set by government regulations and HSE guidance. Safety comes first at each stage, for our crew and for everyone else in the building.
We test rather than guess. A BOHS P402 qualified surveyor inspects the area and takes samples for analysis at a UKAS accredited laboratory. The lab confirms whether asbestos is present and which type, including the three main types used in British buildings: white (chrysotile), brown (amosite) and blue asbestos (crocidolite). The result decides whether the job is licensed, notifiable or non-licensed, and it shapes the written risk assessment and method statement. Sampling first keeps the plan accurate and the price fair.
Before anything is touched, the work area is protected and sealed off. Wet methods and dust suppression keep fibres down, and licensed work takes place inside a sealed enclosure. We remove materials whole wherever possible, because broken material is what releases dangerous fibres.
Asbestos waste is hazardous waste and can never go in a household bin or a general skip. We double-wrap it in heavy polythene, label it and carry it under our waste carrier licence (CBDU538609) to licensed facilities. You get waste consignment notes as proof it was disposed of legally.
We HEPA vacuum and wet-wipe the area. Independent air tests are recommended after any removal, and on licensed work an independent analyst carries out a four-stage clearance before you go back in. The paperwork is yours to keep.
Licensed work needs an ASB5 notification to the HSE at least 14 days before it starts. We send it for you, which is why it pays to call early if the removal sits inside a renovation or a sale.
On the day, the area is sealed inside an enclosure with an airlock and negative pressure units, so air only flows in. Our operatives wear properly fitted, face-fit tested respirators and disposable overalls, follow HSE ACoP L143 and monitor the air throughout. Only after an independent four-stage clearance is the area certified safe to use.
Damaged asbestos only gets worse. A cracked garage roof takes another hit from every winter storm off the Channel, and a renovation that stalls for a week can lose its builder for a month. Getting the right advice early is the quickest route back to work and the safest option you have.
Our HSE licensed team covers the whole county with a 24-hour response, fixed written quotes and a five-star Checkatrade rating. We turn up when we say we will and leave the site clean.
Call 0239 307 2182, email admin@meyerenvironmental.co.uk, message us on WhatsApp or fill in the enquiry form.
Fill in the form and our local team will be in touch within 24 hours.
It happens more than people think. A builder cuts into a boarded ceiling with power tools, a tenant drills through a panel, or a weekend job breaks up an old floor. Stop straight away, get everyone out, close the room and leave the dust where it is. Accidental disturbance should be dealt with by a competent asbestos professional before anyone goes back in. Call us and we will tell you what to do next and get a licensed team to you.
Yes. Meyer Southern is HSE accredited and holds an HSE asbestos licence, so we can carry out licensed removal as well as notifiable and non-licensed work. High-risk asbestos work requires a licensed contractor certified by the Health and Safety Executive, and only a licence holder can remove materials like insulating board, pipe lagging, sprayed coatings and loose-fill insulation.
In practice it means one contractor for the whole job, from the first survey to the final clearance, whatever turns up along the way. Our licence number is 262606126, and you can check it on the HSE’s published list of licensed asbestos contractors. Ask for a copy of the licence when we quote.
No. Asbestos in good condition that nobody is going to disturb is often safer left where it is and managed. A management survey records what is there, its condition and what should happen to it.
The usual options are removal, encapsulation (sealing the surface so it cannot release fibres) or monitoring it over time. Removal makes sense when the material is damaged or when planned work will disturb it. We will give you a straight recommendation, including when the right answer is to leave it alone. Book an asbestos survey West Sussex visit to find out which applies to your property.
Asbestos becomes dangerous once it is damaged or disturbed and releases fibres. Breathed in, asbestos fibres lodge in the lungs, and prolonged inhalation increases the risk of mesothelioma. Asbestos exposure is also linked to asbestosis and lung cancer. Symptoms of asbestos-related diseases usually appear decades after someone was exposed, which is why people often do not connect the two.
The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 set the rules. Anyone responsible for non-domestic premises has a duty to manage asbestos, and that includes the common parts of flats. Homeowners do not carry the same duty, but landlords have duties to their tenants, and any contractor working in your home must follow the regulations. We explain what applies to you on the first call, including which safety records to keep.
Our crew arrives with specialist protective equipment, including respirators and disposable overalls. The work area is protected and sealed, and on licensed jobs we build a full enclosure under negative pressure so fibres cannot escape. Removal follows the risk assessment, using wet methods and dust suppression, and the waste is double-wrapped, labelled and taken to licensed facilities.
In most homes you can stay in the rest of the house while we work, and in most businesses the rest of the building stays open. Your project lead tells you which rooms are off limits and when each one is clear, and safety checks are signed off before any area reopens. Every job is planned to keep disruption to the people living or working there as low as possible.
Stop first. Close off the area, keep people out and do not sweep or vacuum. Get advice from a competent asbestos professional before you do anything else.
Homeowners can legally deal with small amounts of lower-risk bonded asbestos if they take care, but anything friable or higher risk, such as insulating board, has to be handled by trained professionals. Doing licensed work without a licence is an offence, and fly-tipping asbestos waste can lead to heavy fines. It must never go in a household bin or general skip. When we remove asbestos for you, the waste consignment notes are yours to keep as proof. Not sure what you are looking at? Send a photo on WhatsApp and we will tell you whether it needs testing.
Yes. Our asbestos removal services cover full asbestos garage demolition as well as roof-only jobs. Many garages built before the 1990s have asbestos cement in the roof sheets, wall panels, doors and rainwater goods. We dismantle the structure panel by panel, keeping sheets whole where we can, and take the waste away under our waste carrier licence.
If the garage has power, it needs to be safely isolated before we start, and we will explain how when we quote. Once the panels are gone, we clear and clean the site so it is ready for a new garage, a shed or more garden. Contact us with a few photos. Where the asbestos cement is easy to identify, we can often complete a fixed written quote without a full inspection first.
Licensed work has a fixed lead time, because the risk assessment and plan of work must be in place and the HSE must be notified 14 days before work starts. Allow at least two weeks from booking to removal day. Emergency work can sometimes start sooner with the HSE’s agreement.
Across the industry, a survey and report typically takes one to seven days, and preparation and permits three to fourteen days. The removal itself can take a single day for a garage roof or several weeks on a large commercial site. If your job is part of a renovation or a property sale, call us early so the notice period does not hold anything up.
For anything beyond a small, obvious job, yes. A full survey is needed before major structural work on any building put up before 2000, and handling asbestos safely starts with a comprehensive survey that identifies every material involved. An asbestos management survey covers a building that stays in use. Asbestos refurbishment and demolition surveys find it before construction work begins.
Demolition surveys are fully intrusive because the building is coming down, so we match the survey to the work you have planned. All our surveys follow HSG264 and can cover a whole building or a single room. A sale often triggers one, when the buyer’s surveyor flags something suspect. Our asbestos survey West Sussex page explains the full process.
Asbestos testing means taking a small sample and sending it for analysis at a UKAS accredited laboratory, which confirms whether asbestos is present and which type it is. Home kits exist, but taking a sample badly can release fibres, and one result tells you nothing about the rest of the property.
Our surveyors take samples under controlled conditions and seal them on site. We test any suspect material, including artex and textured coatings, ceiling tiles and boards, floor tiles, garage roof sheets, soffits, fascias and guttering, insulating board and water tanks. The results feed straight into the risk assessment, so you know what was found, how serious it is and what it means for your job.
The price depends on the material, how much there is, its condition, access, and whether the job is licensed, notifiable or non-licensed. A shed roof in a back garden is a very different job from licensed insulating board removal in an occupied office, and that complexity shows up in the price, so every quote is based on what we find.
We do not guess prices over the phone. We assess each job, including any survey or sampling it needs, and give you a fixed written quote covering the risk assessment, removal, disposal and waste consignment notes. Call 0239 307 2182 to discuss your job and get a no-obligation quote.
Yes. Asbestos removal services are available in Bognor Regis and surrounding areas, from the town centre out to Barnham, Yapton and Selsey. The same team covers the coast and the villages inland, so you get the same service and the same paperwork wherever the job is.
Arun District Council points residents to the Worthing and Chichester recycling centres as the nearest that take cement-bonded asbestos. That only works for small amounts of bonded sheet. For anything else, or if you would rather not handle it yourself, contact us with a photo and a short description. We will give you advice on what has been identified, what the job involves and how soon we can complete it. Send an enquiry or call 0239 307 2182.
Only specific types of asbestos waste can be dropped off at designated recycling centres. West Sussex County Council accepts cement-bonded asbestos only, up to 200kg, at its Burgess Hill, Chichester, Crawley and Worthing sites. It must be double wrapped or double bagged in clear 1,000-gauge polythene and sealed with tape so staff can see what is inside, and anything not packaged properly can be turned away. Every visit needs a booking and proof that you live in the county. Follow the council’s own guidelines and check its website for further information before you set off.
Any other type of asbestos, or a larger amount, has to go through a contractor to a licensed site. The recycling centres are also for householders only, so anyone in the building trade needs to arrange disposal another way. We collect it, carry it under our waste carrier licence and give you the consignment notes. Our team covers the whole county, including East Grinstead, Burgess Hill, Littlehampton, Shoreham by Sea, Lancing and Midhurst, along with neighbouring Hampshire and East Sussex.
