Blog 2023

Recently a private school was prosecuted and fined by HSE for exposure to radon gas : "Boarding school fined £50,000 after pupils overexposed to radon radioactive gas". There is a lot of information online regarding radon exposure, so this article does not intend to describe radon from start to finish. Instead we take a look at what we know from the HSE statement and information found in the press, and undertake some exposure / radon concentration estimations. Furthermore, we highlight some particular issues that schools and other workplaces should consider - one is that even where you have a radon potential of < 1% (lowest category), depending on your specific circumstances you could still have a radon exposure problem and you may need to carry out a risk assessment and radon monitoring.

[Main article updated October 2023]. At the time of writing (mid July 2023), ONR have released their guidance on the new IRR17 consent process. We are now awaiting HSE to do the same before October 2023, but our understanding is that ONR / HSE guidance will be practically identical. So Ionactive has been looking at the ONR guidance, and following some interesting comments on various radiotherapy related forums, we are drawn towards the accelerator guidance (safety assessment form). In particular the phrase 'estimates must show that dose rates do not exceed 7.5 micro Sv h^-1 outside any shielded enclosure'. The correct interpretation of this phrase is critical.

Are you a non-UK based company working with ionising radiation in the UK? Are you a UK based company having x-ray equipment installed, commissioned, serviced or repaired by a company based outside the UK? If so – please read on!

Further education, such as university is important, but do not rush for the sake of it. Mark Ramsay from Ionactive summarises his progress so far ! There are many routes into a career in radiation protection, but in all cases practical experience is essential.

The Ionactive website (and Ionactive as a company) have always been a little different. Yes, there is a commercial side where we offer Radiation Protection Adviser (RPA) services and radiation safety training (such as our online Radiation Protection Supervisor course). However, since we started (2002), Ionactive has offered an extensive free radiation protection resource hub which is much more than a few selected links. This new blog entry for 2023 highlights new resource and updates to existing resources.

An article outlining the likely new consent system for users of ionising radiation in the UK. Thoughts from Ionactive plus a summary of the main points from the 'IRR17 Consents Workshop: The New System' meeting, organised by SRP on the 16 February 2023 at The Studio, Birmingham. Members of SRP can obtain the full meeting documents so this blog entry brings these up and coming changes to widest audience possible. [Updated October 2023].