Guidance for your building
The duties are the same everywhere; the water systems and the people exposed are not. Pick your setting.
Care homesCare homes and assisted-living settings combine two of the highest Legionella risk factors in one building: residents who are often elderly, frail or immunocompromised, and water systems that must stay comfortable yet hot enough to remain safe. Many of the people most susceptible to Legionnaires' disease live here full time, so the consequences of a control failure are far more serious than in a typical workplace.Hotels & hospitalityHotels, guesthouses and hospitality venues are a classic Legionella challenge because demand is so uneven. Rooms sit empty out of season or midweek, en-suite showers and basin taps go unused for days, and large hot-water systems serve long, branching pipe runs where temperature and flow are hard to hold steady. Guests also expect powerful showers, which generate exactly the fine aerosol that can carry the bacteria into the lungs.Schools & universitiesSchools, colleges and universities present a distinctive Legionella profile shaped by the academic calendar. Long holidays, half-terms and weekends leave water sitting in pipework for extended periods, and the start of each term effectively means restarting systems that have been dormant. Sites are often large, with sports changing rooms, science labs, kitchens and seldom-used outlets scattered across many buildings of different ages.Hospitals & healthcareHealthcare premises carry some of the highest stakes in Legionella control. Patients can be seriously ill, immunocompromised or undergoing augmented care, so they are far more vulnerable to infection, and hospital-acquired cases of Legionnaires' disease have been documented. Water systems are also extremely complex, with extensive distribution, specialist clinical equipment and outlets that may be used infrequently.OfficesOffice buildings are often seen as low risk, and many are, but that perception is exactly where problems start. Modern working patterns mean desks, kitchenettes, toilets and shower facilities can go unused for days at a time, and hybrid working has made stagnation a year-round issue rather than just a holiday one. The COVID-19 period showed how quickly water quality can deteriorate in buildings that empty out.Industrial & manufacturingIndustrial and manufacturing facilities face Legionella risks that go well beyond the hot and cold taps. Many sites operate cooling towers or evaporative condensers, which are among the highest-risk systems of all because they discharge large volumes of aerosol that can travel considerable distances. Several of the most serious outbreaks on record have been traced to poorly maintained cooling towers.Residential & landlordsLandlords letting residential property have a clear legal duty to assess and manage the risk of Legionella for their tenants, even though many domestic systems are relatively simple and low risk. The duty applies to a single buy-to-let just as it does to a large portfolio, and confusion about what is actually required is common.Dental practicesDental practices and clinics have a specific and well-recognised Legionella concern: dental unit waterlines. The narrow-bore tubing that supplies handpieces, syringes and scalers runs warm, has very low flow and is prone to biofilm, creating ideal conditions for bacterial growth, and treatments produce a fine aerosol close to the patient's airway.Retail & shopping centresRetail stores and shopping centres are easy to underestimate because they are not obviously water-intensive, yet they often contain exactly the conditions Legionella exploits. Staff welfare facilities, customer toilets, cleaners' sinks and occasional-use showers can go unused for long stretches, particularly in large units, back-of-house areas and tenancies awaiting a new occupant.High-rise & blocks of flatsHigh-rise and multi-occupancy residential buildings concentrate several Legionella challenges into one structure. Water often has to be stored and pumped to serve upper floors, long vertical and horizontal pipe runs make temperature and flow hard to maintain, and storage tanks and recirculating hot water need careful management to avoid lukewarm zones where bacteria multiply.Leisure & sports centresLeisure centres, gyms and sports facilities combine high water use with high aerosol generation, which makes them a meaningful Legionella setting. Banks of showers in changing rooms produce large volumes of spray, and where some are used heavily while others are rarely touched, stagnation and warm temperatures can build up unnoticed in the quieter outlets.Social housingSocial housing and housing associations manage Legionella at scale, across large and diverse portfolios that mix individual homes, low-rise blocks, sheltered schemes and houses in multiple occupation. The legal duty to assess and control risk applies throughout, but the real difficulty is consistency: doing the right things reliably across thousands of properties and many shared communal systems.