NEBOSH Courses: Here’s Everything You Need to Know

The NEBOSH health and safety qualification is the most internationally-recognised with nearly 90,000 people worldwide holding a NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety.

NEBOSH (National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health) courses cover all work environments and are ideal for those starting out or already working in health, safety and risk management in the workplace. Let’s look at the NEBOSH courses and qualifications in more detail.

What are the NEBOSH Certification courses?

There are a variety of NEBOSH certification courses that accommodate different levels of health and safety requirements, from online courses for employees to qualifications for those that wish to make a career in health and safety.

There are three standard NEBOSH health and safety courses – the NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety and the NEBOSH International General Certificate – which both provide an excellent grounding of health, safety and risk management and the skills – and the NEBOSH National Certificate in Construction Health and Safety.

The more specialised NEBOSH National Certificate in Fire Safety and Risk Management ensures compliance with UK fire legislation, helping to minimise any risk of fire in the workplace. NEBOSH also provide diploma courses, the National Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety, which is equivalent to a degree and matches the requirement for Graduate IOSH.

Many construction companies and sites ensure employees have sufficient health and safety training, in particular the NEBOSH National Certificate in Construction Health and Safety. In March 2021, the NEBOSH NGC1 was upgraded to the NEBOSH NC1 with enhanced aspects in risk management and safety on construction sites, including:

• Improving on site safety
• Reducing the risk of employees experiencing life-changing injuries
• Challenging behaviours that are unsafe and using safe systems in the workplace
• Creating and providing practical solutions that are safe
• Understanding the necessary requirements of the Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations 2015

Why should you do a NEBOSH course?

Whilst taking a NEBOSH course does require a significant investment in time, it is a NEBOSH health and safety qualification that is highly respected worldwide. There are plenty of benefits:

• The skills you gain are immediately applicable to your workplace, no matter the industry or sector you work in
• It is a proven international standard of health and safety
• Gain skills and knowledge that is practical and transferrable
• Recognise workplace hazards and be able to take the steps to control and minimise the risk of injuries in the workplace
• Support and promote a proactive health and safety culture, as well as develop health and safety commitments, policies and procedures
• Opens up potential job opportunities
• Adds value to your organisation/company within a short space of time

As the UK emerges from the coronavirus restrictions and people return back to the workplace, or combine homeworking with the office, the scale of health and safety training has changed. Employers have as much responsibility towards the safety of their employees in the office, or on construction sites, as they do if they are working from home.