THE widow of a teacher who died of asbestos-related cancer has called for the Government to do more to protect pupils and staff from the deadly dust.

Carol Anthony's husband, Alan, died of mesothelioma after he was believed to have been exposed to asbestos while working in a London comprehensive school.

Now Carol has spoken out to mark Action Mesothelioma Day today.

Events to raise awareness are being held across the country. Among them will be a gathering of health and legal experts, victims of the illness and members of the public in Chesterfield. They are expected to call on the Government to assess the risk of asbestos in schools and to plan to remove.

About nine out of ten schools in Derby contain asbestos. Incidents involving the substance include one in 2004 when contractors working at Silverhill Primary School, Mickleover, disturbed asbestos while fitting new windows and in 2007 at Lees Brook Community Sports College, Chaddesden, when low-level exposure to asbestos from a cupboard was discovered. In both cases, experts concluded the level of exposure was "negligible".

Mrs Anthony, 65, of Woodlands Lane, Quarndon, said: "We can not be certain of where in schools there is asbestos because inadequate records were kept in the past and it can be unwittingly disturbed during a building programme. In the case of my husband the solicitors tried to track down the source of asbestos in the London school where he worked but there was only a very scanty record, and by that I mean scrappy notes on a sheet of A4 paper."

She warned that, without proper protection, families would continue to be suffer the loss of loved ones. Her husband, Alan, died in May 2005 at the age of 72.

Retired teacher Carol, who worked in London and retired to Derbyshire, said: "With Alan it happened so quickly and the devastation of that can't be explained. One moment you have a living person with whom you are sharing everything and the next there's nobody there."

Derbyshire Asbestos Support Team co-ordinator Joanne Gordon has organised today's event in the Arena, New Square, Chesterfield, from 11am to 1pm.

The team wants an audit of the extent, type and condition of asbestos in all schools, along with training for staff about dealing with the risk.

Ultimately it wants its safe removal from all schools.

It is also calling on the Government to protect people from asbestos which is believed to be present in nine out of ten council houses.

Mrs Gordon is collecting signatures for a petition asking the Government to reinstate its Hidden Killer campaign to raise awareness of asbestos-related illness.

She said: "Government policy is putting maintenance workers, tenants and school staff and children at risk. The Hidden Killer campaign should be reinstated and action taken urgently to protect tenants, school staff and children."

Nationally, 178 school teachers died of mesothelioma between 1980 and 2005.