The Independent has revealed that asbestos campaigners are to carry out secret tests at English schools to reveal the levels of asbestos present in classrooms and other areas.

The tests have been arranged by MPs, leaders of teaching unions and families of teachers killed by asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma. You can read more about the tests on The Independent's website.

Asbestos is thought to be present in most schools in the UK and these tests will reveal just how much of a threat it poses.

We have blogged previously about the dangers of asbestos in schools. Michael Lees, Paul Rowen (a Lib Dem MP) and Mary Bousted (General Secretary of the Association of Teachers & Lecturers) have put forward some eminently sensible proposals on dealing with asbestos in schools – see Michael Lees’s website for more details. However the fact that these undercover tests are deemed necessary demonstrates that the government has not done enough to deal with this threat.

Previously most asbestos-related disease cases have involved people who have been exposed in an industrial setting, however we are now seeing an increase in cases amongst teachers, lecturers and other school workers.