Black & White Facilities / Service brief
Legionella Risk Assessments
An assessment establishes the risks and controls for the actual water systems. Taking over premises, altering pipework, changing occupancy or finding that controls are ineffective can require the assessment to be reviewed. An old document should not be treated as current simply because its title still matches the building.
Overview
The survey needs to consider system use as well as installed equipment. An outlet used throughout the week differs from one in a rarely occupied area. Changes to use can matter even when no plumbing work has taken place.
Our full service catalogue, including every individual service, is available across every listed sector and location. For one site or several, we agree the scope, access and programme around the buildings concerned.
What the work can include
The scope can include reviewing existing information, surveying accessible water systems, identifying storage and distribution arrangements, examining control records and developing prioritised findings. It names the buildings and systems covered, with exclusions and additional access needs made clear.
Outputs include a system description, relevant schematic information, identified risks, existing controls and an action plan. HSE explains the assessment requirements, including water-system understanding, exposure and management arrangements. The plumbing survey supports those conclusions with identifiable locations and equipment.
Survey findings and next decisions
A risk assessment is different from a water sample or a cleaning certificate. It examines how the installation and its use can create or control risk. Sampling and remedial works follow a defined purpose where the findings justify them.
Distinguish a physical defect, missing information and an ineffective routine. A damaged tank component may need repair; an unidentified pipe route may need further survey; a missed monitoring task needs a working arrangement and responsible person. A useful report makes those differences clear.
Before we visit
Provide existing assessments, drawings, asset lists, monitoring records and details of previous corrective work. Explain the water supply, tanks, heaters, outlets and any specialist systems. Identify areas that are unused, used intermittently or occupied by people with greater susceptibility to infection.
Arrange access to plant, storage and representative outlets, with local staff able to explain use. Identify landlord boundaries and any systems held by retained specialists. Where concealed routes or locked areas limit the survey, agree how the information gap will be recorded and resolved.
How the work proceeds
We establish the premises and system boundary, review records and coordinate the competent assessment. The survey considers the installation alongside its operating and monitoring information. Findings are recorded against the relevant location so the estates team can commission the right follow-on task.
At handover, priorities and responsibilities are explained. Separate urgent control decisions from planned physical improvements and record the evidence needed to close each action. The assessment remains linked to the water-management programme and is reviewed when changes or findings make its basis unreliable.
What affects cost and timing
System complexity, building numbers, record quality, access and the level of schematic detail affect cost. A readily documented building differs from an estate where tanks, branches and ownership boundaries need to be established first.
The survey may need access to occupied rooms and restricted plant spaces. Coordinate escorts and local knowledge before attendance so important systems are not missed. Repairs, sampling, intrusive tracing and preparation of additional drawings should have clear inclusion or separate instructions in the proposal.
Sector applications
Offices need tenancy boundaries and varying occupancy understood. Education needs closure periods and intermittent use considered. Healthcare and care needs the relevant specialist water-safety and user requirements incorporated into the brief.
These are examples within the full sector range. Our service and project offering supports the sectors we serve, with the survey and control recommendations matched to each premises and water system.
Locations covered
We cover Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham and Tees Valley, including Berwick-upon-Tweed, Alnwick, Morpeth, Hexham, Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, Sunderland, Durham, Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees and Redcar and Cleveland. View all locations.
For portfolio assessments, provide a site list and the available records for each building. Shared report formats are useful, but the findings and action priorities must remain specific to each installation.
Frequently asked questions
Is a water sample the same as a risk assessment?
No. A sample provides analytical evidence from a defined location and time. The assessment examines the system, exposure risks and controls, including matters that sampling alone cannot establish.
Does every finding mean the plumbing must be replaced?
No. Actions can involve maintenance, better monitoring, removal of a specific defect or further information. The recommendation should explain the actual problem and the proportionate next step.
Can the assessment proceed without current drawings?
Available records are a starting point. The survey may need to establish the system and identify further tracing or schematic work. Missing information should remain explicit rather than being filled with assumptions.
When should an existing assessment be reviewed?
Review it regularly and when changes or evidence suggest it is no longer valid. Altered systems, changed use and ineffective controls are relevant triggers; a fixed date is not the only reason to act.
Guides and practical reading
Read What Is a Legionella Risk Assessment?, the Water Hygiene Checklist and What Is Remedial Action Tracking?. Browse the Knowledge Centre.
Related services and enquiry
See Plumbing and Water, Water Hygiene and Legionella, Hot and Cold Water Systems, Statutory Maintenance and Compliance Remedial Works. Explore all services, maintenance, projects, sectors and locations.
Contact Black & White Facilities with the premises, current records, changes and site contacts. We define the practical survey, report and action-plan handover needed.
Discuss the scope
Tell us what needs attention.
Share the site, the issue and any access requirements so we can discuss the next step.