Nancy Tait

Nancy Tait (b. Feb. 12, 1920-d. Feb. 13, 2009), born in Enfield, London was an activist and campaigner who sought to raise awareness of the health risks associated with exposure to asbestos.,^[1][2]

Early life

Nancy Tait was born Nancy Clark on 12 February 1920. Her father was a compositor, and she was educated at Enfield County School, a girls' grammar school. She then worked for the Civil Service. During the Second World War she was assigned to the Post Office. While working there she met Bill Tait; they married in 1943. After the war she worked variously as a teacher, at the Patent Office, and as an administrator at London University.

Motivation for Activism

Her husband Bill Tait had continued to be employed by the Post Office after the war. He died in 1968 of pleural mesothelioma.^[3] The link between asbestos and mesothelioma had only been recently established at the time, and Bill had not worked directly with the compound, though he had been exposed to it. The Post Office did not accept that he had acquired an industrial disease as a result of his work, and refused to accept liability for the condition that led to his death.

Following her husband's death, Nancy began a campaign to seek recognition that he died of an industrial disease. Over the following forty years this campaign broadened to cover other diseases and conditions caused by working conditions. She became an expert in asbestos-related diseases, and lobbied continuously for better treatment for sufferers and legal acknowledgement of liabilities incurred by employers who had exposed their staff to asbestos. She represented the families of asbestos victims at inquests and in appeals against the DHSS's refusal to meet claims for industrial disablement benefit.

Writings and collaborations

In 1976 she published the booklet "Asbestos Kills". This generated additional interest in her campaign, as did the award of a Churchill fellowship, which allowed her to visit a wide range of experts to collect information in support of her work. Through her diligent research skills, she became a published co-author of scientific papers on the topic of asbestos and health.^[4]

In 1978 she established a victim support group, the Society for the Prevention of Asbestosis and Industrial Diseases (SPAID), which lobbied for tighter asbestos controls.

She also collaborated with artist Conrad Atkinson on statement artworks speaking out against asbestos disease.^[5]

In addition to the Churchill fellowship, Tait was awarded an MBE in 1996 and an honorary doctorate from Southampton University in 1999. In 2005 the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health awarded her the Sypol Lifetime Achievement Award. She died on 13 February 2009; she was survived by a son, a sister and a brother.

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