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A Kirklees councillor has called for a Cleckheaton housing development to be halted after asbestos dust was found in the homes of nearby residents.
When the construction of 180 homes on a plot of land off Westgate began, residents quickly became concerned by the amount of dust being generated and its potential contents. As dust coated surfaces, residents sent samples collected in their homes to be analysed by asbestos specialist, Acorn. In June and July alone, five samples had tested positive for brown or white asbestos, with these findings seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
During the planning process, it was known that asbestos was among the materials present on the site, and a remediation strategy was drawn up, setting out how risks associated with any contaminants found, including asbestos, would be addressed and mitigated. Applicant Strata Homes - which is carrying out the construction - and social housing provider, Thirteen Group - which has taken on the site - have maintained that work is being carried out safely and in line with regulations.
Kirklees Council committed to four weeks' worth of testing on the perimeter of the site, beginning on August 11, 2025. This showed no evidence of asbestos or any other airborne pollutants, Executive Director for Place, David Shepherd, told yesterday's (September 9) Cabinet meeting. As a result, he said this testing was being stepped down.
But for locals, several of whom have reported declining health since the works began, serious concerns remain, not only for asbestos, but for other substances the site was shown to contain in planning documents including lead, arsenic and cyanide. Residents are also not convinced that the council's testing has been adequate or accurate due to the methods used.
At yesterday's (September 10) Cabinet meeting, councillors Jo Lawson (Community Independents, Crosland Moor and Netherton) and Ali Arshad (Community Independents, Heckmondwike) also made their concerns known, asking questions about the situation at the Cleckheaton site.
Cllr Arshad felt the local authority had not properly explored the concerns of the local community. He said he had visited the area and described the hoardings as "not fit for purpose". The councillor also noted the dust being "kicked up" by vehicles and said there "weren't any measures taken" to reduce the dust levels or keep them at ground level, though this was disputed.
He said he did not want the council to "under investigate" and be the subject of another Netflix series of Toxic Town. This covered a case in Corby, Northamptonshire, where children were born with severe birth defects, believed to have been caused by industrial pollution as steelworks land was redeveloped. A legal battle, which concluded in 2009, ruled that the Corby Borough Council had been negligent, with families awarded an undisclosed financial settlement.
Cllr Arshad added: "I would like for this to be halted, if not for the testing alone, to also look at the preventative measures that we have in place to reduce the dust and keep it to a lower level. That is the bare basics of what we should be doing. These are preventative measures for the dust to be flying out into the surrounding streets and then going forward I think the local community needs to be spoken to by representatives of Kirklees and the Cabinet."
David Shepherd, sought to reassure Cllr Arshad. He said that it wasn't necessarily the role of the hoardings to prevent dust from escaping but the dampening down measures, which he said he had seen in place on the site. He said that the council had been given "a couple" of residents' samples which "didn't demonstrate anything that would be concerning in terms of levels of asbestos or anything else that was present".
'Neither had decided to get involved'
Mr Shepherd said he couldn't say that dust had never escaped from the site, with this the case at "many" construction sites. He also said that members needed to be aware that in urban areas, there is a "background level" of contaminants in place which could have been picked up on residents' tests.
He went on to say that based on all the available evidence, neither the Health and Safety Executive or UK Health Security Agency had decided to get involved. He added: "As a result of that, I have no reason to instruct the development works to stop on that site. It would be abnormal for the council to do that when there is no evidence to do so.
"The council would understandably be liable for costs in those arrangements but that is not the reason why I wouldn't instruct that. The reason is because there is no evidence to compel a ceasing of works on this site and it is an appropriate site that has come through the planning process for development purposes and that's what's happening."
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