HM Gov. doesn't want to think about lead

There is an astonishing lack of public policy around lead in the UK. The problem is so severe, systemic and expensive that the government cannot afford to acknowledge it's existence.

There are obviously laws about the inclusion of lead in consumer products (the ban on leaded petrol, etc.), but there is zero legislation to protect householders from the dangers in their homes. In the US and other countries (e.g. France), landlords are obliged to test their property for lead and inform tenants of any dangers. Property sales must likewise be accompanied by lead testing so that new owners are apprised of potential risks. The US leads the way in testing most children directly for the level of lead in their blood (a requirement of eligibility for Medicaid). 

In the UK, we think of ourselves as ahead of the US when it comes to reducing toxic chemicals in food and consumer goods. When it comes to lead - no way. The US is far ahead in its range of legislation to say what levels of lead are acceptable in various products and foods.

In the UK, the only government body to have developed rules around exposure to environmental lead is the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which regulates exposures in the workplace. Thanks to HSE's Control of Lead at Work (CLAW) rules, contractors are legally obliged to ensure their employees (all adults, of course) are not exposed above a certain level. But astoundingly these rules apply uniquely to employees, not to the people who actually have to live or work in the effected area in the long term, and certainly not to those most at risk: children.

Under CLAW, employers are responsible for deciding whether there is a risk of lead exposure and blood levels need to be monitored. Naturally, on small residential projects almost no employers are actually doing this. 

In the US contractors are obliged to do "clearance testing" after working on any areas of lead paint - thorough testing of affected areas using dust wipes to ensure no contamination has been created. In the UK most contractors would not know how to conduct such testing, let alone be willing to be bound by it. We strongly advise you conduct such tests yourself via Lead Aware UK if your house has been renovated.

The UK government's help to householders amounts to a leaflet published with some overconfident advice on how to handle lead paint in homes. Anyone who followed the advice in that leaflet would have been putting their children at risk. It was withdrawn in April 2024 as out of date and has (at time of writing) yet to be replaced with anything else.

For more detail on what the UK isn't doing and should be doing, I recommend this article by experts from the Lead Exposure Elimination Project.