Radon safety standard
The safety of our customers, colleagues and contractors is at the heart of all we do. We are committed to ensuring the health and well-being of our customers while meeting all regulation and duty of care as an absolute minimum and best practice where appropriate.
Radon is a natural radioactive gas which seeps into buildings from minute amounts of uranium that are present in all rocks, soils, brick and concrete. The amount, or activity, of radon is measured in Becquerel’s (Bq) per cubic metres (m3) of air. The average level in UK homes is 20 Bq/m3. For levels below 100 Bq/m3, the risk remains relatively low and is not a cause for concern. Our approach is to risk assess and manage all
properties where the level exceeds 100 Bq/m3.
This is our standard:
1. We have one person, our Landlord’s Authorised Person (Head of M&E and Compliance) who has overall responsibility for radon safety in resident’s homes and communal areas and communal areas and reviews our policies and procedures annually to ensure that they are up to date.
2. The Landlord’s Authorised Person will appoint a Delivery Duty Manager who has responsibility for drafting operational procedures, processes and managing the daily operations for Radon Safety.
3. We compile a list of all properties that need to be inspected and maintained and this is kept up to date. This list is based on an initial assessment by Public Health England, who calculate the likely risk of Radon on a postcode basis.
4. We keep and maintain a database of all radon information. This includes:
- The results of all monitoring
- Risk assessments
- Any remedial works undertaken
- Areas of controlled access
5. All properties with readings between the Government’s Target Level of 100 Bq/m3 and the Action Level of 200 Bq/m3, are initially assessed to determine whether our tenants are at risk. This is done through the installation of testing equipment for a period of three months.
6. The results of the test will determine whether or not we need to put in place control measures and/or remedial work. We will discuss the requirements with the resident before carrying out any work. The aim of remedial work is to reduce radon levels to as low as reasonably practicable. Remedial work is undertaken where the radon concentration exceeds 200 Bq/m3.
7. Regular inspections and maintenance are carried out of all engineering systems provided for maintaining radon concentrations at a safe level. We keep records of all radon equipment requiring periodic servicing and maintenance. This work is done by specialist contractors at the following frequency levels.
| Type of equipment | Servicing frequency |
| Positive Input Ventilation | 3 yearly |
| Passive sumps, mechanical sumps and sub floor ventilation systems | 5 yearly |
8. Following installation/remedial work, we carry out retesting and continuous monitoring at the following frequency levels.
- Following remediation works to reduce the level of radon in properties to below the Action Level of 200 Bq/m3, further testing is carried out at 3 yearly intervals to ensure the target level has been reached.
- Properties which return test results between the Action Level of 200 Bq/m3 and the Target Level of 100 Bq/m3and a risk assessment of the householders has determined that remediation measures are not required, will be retested on a 5 yearly basis to ensure that radon levels in the property have not increased above the Action Level of 200 Bq/m3.
- Properties which return test results below the Target Level of 100 Bq/m3 will be considered for retesting on a 10 yearly basis to ensure that radon levels in the property have not increased above the Action Level of 200 Bq/m3.
- Where a satisfactory reduction cannot be achieved, the premises access controls may need to be considered to limit any levels of exposure. Any planned access controls will be discussed in detail with the residents involved.
9. We monitor the performance of our contractors to ensure that risk assessments, servicing and repairs are carried out on time and to our satisfaction.