The family of a cleaner who died after she was exposed to asbestos in council flats has received a significant sum in compensation from her former employers.

The 58-year-old from Kent was diagnosed with mesothelioma in July 2009 and sadly died just a month later. There is no cure for the disease, which is caused by asbestos.

She was exposed to the dust whilst working as a cleaner for a London council from 1976 to 1988.

The mother-of-one was responsible for cleaning the common areas in blocks of flats on a council estate. Asbestos sheeting used to conceal pipes was often disturbed by local youths. It was her job to sweep up the debris.

She was never warned about the dangers of asbestos or given adequate protection from the dust.

Exposed to asbestos whilst working for the council

Before her diagnosis she was working as a cleaning supervisor for Morgan Stanley in the City and had hoped to continue working until she was 65.

Her husband said she was fit and healthy and it was a tremendous shock when she first started suffering from breathlessness and was then diagnosed with the disease.

He said: “I am incredibly angry that I lost my wife to this disease. She was exposed to asbestos through no fault of her own. All her life she looked after her health and kept herself fit. It is so unfair that her life was cut short because of her work all those years ago.”

Her husband instructed asbestos claims specialists Thompsons Solicitors to investigate a claim for compensation.

Thompsons was able to prove that she had been exposed to asbestos whilst working for the council who admitted liability and settled the claim out of court.

Gill Connelly from Thompsons Solicitors said: “Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer which becomes apparent many years after exposure. It is often associated with men who worked in heavy industry but as this case shows also affects women employed in the public sector.”