Pressroom :: CAMPAIGN FRONTED BY IAN WRIGHT
Cambridge asbestos experts back footballer Ian Wright’s campaign
Cambridge’s leading asbestos removal company Kershaw Contracting Services is backing a new campaign to warn local tradesmen of the dangers of asbestos.
Ex-footballer Ian Wright has been drafted in to front the Health & Safety Executive Campaign, after it was revealed 20 tradesmen a week die from exposure.
That number is likely to grow in the future.
Mick Rayson is the managing director of Kershaw Contracting Services.
He said: “I welcome this move to use a celebrity such as Ian Wright to wake Cambridge tradesmen up to the dangers of asbestos. 4,000 people a year die from exposure to asbestos; a quarter of them tradesmen.
“Many workers wrongly believe they are not personally at risk as the substance was banned years ago. But they’re wrong – there is plenty of it still around in the area, and it is tradesmen who are most at risk of exposure.”
Asbestos was widely used as an insulating and fire proofing material in buildings constructed from the 1870s to 1980s.
When disturbed during building or demolition work, asbestos fibres can be released. Breathing in fibres can lead to asbestos-related diseases, mostly cancers of the lungs and chest lining.
It’s estimated a million tonnes are still in British buildings.
Ian Wright was a plasterer before becoming a professional footballer. It’s hoped his presence will attract more publicity and raise awareness of the issue.
Kershaw Contracting Services is a division of the Cambridge-based Kershaw Group.
Parts of the group have a history stretching back 120 years.
It employs 183 people and is well known for its involvement in the community.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
- For further information or to arrange interviews with Kershaw Contracting Services, please contact Paul Green on 08452 303049, or email press@publicityheaven.com
