the nebosh

Globally recognised health, safetyand environmental quali�cations

Globally recognised health, safetyand environmental qualifications

Globally recognised health, safetyand environmental quali�cations

Case Studies

Around a quarter of a million people throughout the world hold a NEBOSH health and safety or environmental qualification.

Our qualifications test the knowledge, skills and competence of people in workplaces and also help to assure employers that they have the right personnel in place to prevent ill-health, injury and environmental failures.

At NEBOSH we see it as our mission to preserve and improve health, safety and the environment in workplaces worldwide. We do this through a framework of qualifications, rigorous awarding procedures and the promotion of high quality education.

Our qualifications

A NEBOSH Diploma is a UK degree equivalent level qualification, sought after by health, safety and environmental professionals and their employers.

Our Certificate level qualifications are taken by people starting a career in health safety and environmental management, as well as managers and executives, who have responsibility to ensure activities under their control are carried out safely, healthily and sustainably.

Our Award level qualifications are popular among employers who understand the benefits of their workforce having a basic understanding of health, safety and environmental controls and practices.

This booklet highlights the personal experience and benefits some of our students have gained from completing their NEBOSH qualification.

Why NEBOSH?

2

CONTENTS:

Contents Featured Qualification Page

Royal Mail NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

4-5

ADM Cocoa UK NEBOSH Environmental Awareness at Work Qualification

6-7

Ali El Farouki NEBOSH Health and Safety at Work Qualification

8-9

Jo-Anne Baur NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

10-11

Dawn Leighton NEBOSH National Certificate in the Management of Health and Well-being at Work

12-13

Joel Nadamo NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

14-15

Dhayalan Jeyeram NEBOSH National Diploma in Environmental Management

16-17

Lisa Pearson NEBOSH International Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety

18-19

Maisaa Nasrallah NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

20-21

Mark Davenport NEBOSH National Certificate in Construction Health and Safety

22-23

Claire Jones NEBOSH Certificate in Environmental Management

24-25

Notes 26

32

...setting high standards

Making sure that over 150,000 people are kept safe and well at work each day is a big responsibility. It’s one that Shaun Davis of Royal Mail thrives on...

As Group Director of Safety, Health & Well-being for one of the UK’s biggest employers, Shaun Davis is determined to maintain high standards within his organisation. NEBOSH qualifications are playing a part in this continued success.

In October 2013, privatisation resulted in two thirds of Royal Mail being sold to shareholders, with the remainder remaining in state-ownership. Despite this change the organisation’s focus on health and safety has remained, according to

Shaun. Key initiatives include “target zero” for fatalities, working towards an accident free workplace and placing a strong emphasis on employee well-being.

Shaun is a great believer in well-being programmes. Royal Mail, for example runs regular “health fairs” where simple medical tests such as for lung-function, diabetes and obesity are offered. Workers are encouraged to raise any concerns identified at these events with their GPs.

“If you have a healthy and health conscious workforce, this in turn has a positive impact at work,” explained Shaun. “People are more active, more capable of doing their job and

Royal Mail...

CASE STUDY:Royal Mail

4

“The qualifications are well recognised and respected so when I was setting minimum standards for the team, this was aligned to NEBOSH qualifications”

For more information about NEBOSH qualifications visit

www.nebosh.org.uk/qualifications

less likely to be injured when moving and handling, for example. So there is a domino effect with well-being, for health, safety, productivity and more.”

Royal Mail works closely with trade unions CWU and Unite to improve health, safety and well-being. This strong relationship and partnership approach is very important, says Shaun. He also highly values the backing of Royal Mail Chief Executive, Moya Greene, who he describes as a “huge supporter of the well-being agenda.”

When it comes to Shaun’s extensive team of safety, health and well-being managers and advisers, he highlights another valuable partnership. One which has developed with NEBOSH.

“I came through the NEBOSH route myself,” said Shaun. “The qualifications are well recognised and respected so when I was setting minimum standards for the team, this was aligned to NEBOSH qualifications. Safety Advisers must have Certificates, while Senior Safety Advisers and Safety Directors must have Diplomas.

“This gives the organisation two very important things. Firstly there is an assurance that we have well trained people who have gone through a robust programme and examination. And secondly there is what that syllabus gives them. I know when they’re out doing their job they are giving sound and competent advice.”

Shaun’s overriding philosophy is that health and safety is something that should be done “with people” not “to people”. His approach is reaping rewards at Royal Mail and we’re proud to be playing a part in this.

54

...can make a big difference

Food ingredients manufacturer ADM Cocoa UK are ticking all the right boxes, when it comes to environmental management.

At their plant near Liverpool, they’ve developed an effective Environmental Management System (EMS) that in 2013 led to ISO 14001 Certification. In addition, they have what they call a “15 by 20 plan,” which sets a target of reducing energy consumption by at least 15 percent by 2020. Waste management is another key area of focus.

But perhaps the most crucial thing ADM Cocoa UK has done to develop its environmental management program is to recognise that

people are hugely important for delivering continuous environmental improvement, because often, the biggest changes occur when employees understand environmental impacts and what they can do about them.

That’s why ADM Cocoa UK was very keen to be among the first companies to put a number of its people through the new NEBOSH Environmental Awareness at Work qualification. As well as being a progression route on to Certificate and Diploma level environmental qualifications, the NEBOSH Environmental Awareness at Work qualification is designed to improve environmental awareness among the general workforce.

Because people...

CASE STUDY:ADM Cocoa UK

6

“We’ve immediately seen that our employees are being more proactive”



Altogether, nine employees ranging from food hygienists to production staff, took part in the course. All of them passed, including Food Safety Manager Anna Ollier.

Anna, 27, who has a degree in Agri-Food, Marketing and Business Studies, told us: “It’s an ideal first step. I think it’s given everyone a good understanding of how everything fits together, and you can easily relate the program content to your role. It certainly improves general awareness and can be taken by employees at all levels.”

Anna is now one of several at ADM Cocoa UK who is planning to take the NEBOSH Certificate in Environmental Management. HS&E Coordinator Greg McCannon is another. Greg, who already holds a NEBOSH General Certificate in Occupational Safety and Health, felt confident from the outset that the new NEBOSH Environmental Awareness at Work qualification would deliver.

He said: “NEBOSH sits right at the top of the pile for qualifications. It is a good , quality program. The idea behind the Environmental Awareness at Work qualification was to get employees to understand how their job impacts energy usage, our packaging materials waste and so on at the facility.

“We’ve immediately seen that our employees are being more proactive. They’re also coming forward with ideas of their own. Altogether, it’s proving very positive and given everyone a more structured approach,” McCannon said.

76

...change your life?

Who is responsible for health & safety at work? Is it the health and safety manager? Is it the board of directors? Is it line management? The answer of course is, all of these people and more. Everyone is responsible for health and safety at work, employers and employees.

Ali El Farouki is Business Development Manager at DMM, a company that owns and operates two land based oil rigs in Algeria in North Africa. It’s Ali’s job to make sure everything runs smoothly - accounting, HR, business relationships and more, including health, safety & environmental (HSE). HSE is important in the oil and gas industry. Ali describes it as “the number one requirement.”

But Ali doesn’t have a background in health, safety or environmental management. First and foremost he’s a business man. In fact he’s from a successful Jordanian family that has a number of business interests around the world.

Ali was raised in Washington DC. He went to university there, where he studied international business management. In 2005 he moved to Dubai in the UAE to work for one of the family businesses, a construction company. Here, he learned a lot about contracting and project management.

When a family member acquired an interest in the Algerian drilling operation, Ali was asked to take up a strategic management role there, overseeing various aspects of the business. He soon recognised the importance of HSE to the operation - in his own words “it had to be top notch.”

He got to know a group of oil and gas safety consultants operating in the region. In fact it was this group who in 2009 suggested that Ali develop his knowledge of health and safety further by taking the NEBOSH Health and Safety at Work Qualification.

Can NEBOSH...

CASE STUDY:Ali El Farouki

8

“HSE is important in the oil and gas industry. Ali describes it as ‘the number one requirement.’”



Ali says it was five days well spent. It helped him “learn the lingo” - something Ali has found really useful when dealing with health and safety issues and promoting DMM. It “opened his eyes” to health & safety, helping him with risk assessments and his ability to foresee dangerous situations. And it gave him a NEBOSH qualification - something he says is “internationally regarded.”

However, the qualification did more than just inform Ali. It affected his whole approach to doing business. He says the course made him see that risk management could be “incredibly useful” not only for safety, but “in all areas of doing business.” Ali now uses a process of risk evaluation and control in all areas he is responsible for.

Being a business man, Ali has also spotted a few opportunities since taking his NEBOSH course. He’s aware that some parts of the world are not up to scratch when it comes to HSE in oil and gas. So he’s now looking at ways of improving standards through training and consultancy provision.

Ali says health and safety will never be his specialism. Doing business is his thing. But his experience in oil and gas, together with his NEBOSH qualification has helped him see that health, safety, environment and risk management is vital when it comes to running a successful business.

98

...whether it’s scrubs or suit

Jo-Anne Baur protects people’s lives in two very different ways. One way you’d expect of someone with a NEBOSH qualification, the other less so.

Jo, as she’s known to her friends and colleagues, is a Health and Safety Co-ordinator at the Nuffield Health Hospital in Brentwood, Essex. She took on the role a few years ago when a colleague retired. Jo had a bit of experience of health and safety from a previous job at a Day Centre, working with people with learning disabilities. She’d been sent on a basic trade union health and safety course after expressing an interest or “opening her big mouth” as she puts it.

However, health and safety is not all that Jo

does at the hospital. She is also an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP). An ODP works in operating theatres and as Jo explains, with a grin: “Our predominant role is to assist in putting people to sleep, and then if they’re good we wake them up again.”

Around 12 years ago, and following a brief spell as an auxillary nurse, Jo began her two year course to qualify as an ODP. As well as gaining experience in theatre, Jo trained in Accident and Emergency and Intensive Care Units, to not only assist consultant surgeons, but to learn about things like airway management.

“So my working week these days sees me wearing two different uniforms,” says Jo.

It’s valuable work,...

CASE STUDY:Jo-Anne Baur

10

“Everywhere I go I see just how critical health and safety is,’ she told us.’Simple failures can have devastating impacts and it’s vital people everywhere understand and appreciate its importance.”



“One is my ODP theatre scrubs, while the other is my health and safety suit.”

Nuffield Health is keen to maintain high health and safety standards. In fact it has introduced a policy requiring its health and safety personnel to gain at least a NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety. Nuffield Health is accredited to deliver the NEBOSH National General Certificate courses in-house to its employees.

Jo, together with several of her colleagues from other hospitals around the country, passed her NEBOSH National General Certificate at the beginning of this year. She says the qualification helped her greatly with legal aspects, but more than that it gave her more confidence.

“People recognise NEBOSH. We’ve been having refurbishment work done recently and I’ve had to clamp down a bit on some of the contractors. The NEBOSH National General Certificate has given me so much more confidence and clout to be honest.”

Jo is proud of both her ODP and health and safety roles. She appreciates the immense value of protecting people from harm. She has seen first hand the impact accidents can have. Jo has worked in busy burns units and has also travelled to India twice to support charities such as the Smile Train and Sylvia Wright Trust. This year, she travelled to Bangladesh with a consultant colleague and theatre nurse to work in A&E and help out with operations.

“Everywhere I go I see just how critical health and safety is,” she told us. “Simple failures can have devastating impacts and it’s vital people everywhere understand and appreciate its importance.”

Well said Jo. Keep up the good work.

1110

...a healthy balance

Getting the balance right between health and safety isn’t always easy. Sometimes health issues can seem hard to address and can get left behind, but not where Dawn Leighton works.

Dawn is employed by UK Power Networks, which distributes electricity throughout London, the South East and the East of England. She’s part of the standards and risk team there, and her main role now is looking at the health of the workforce.

Originally, Dawn had an administration role within the health and safety team, having secured a job there following a period of travelling after leaving school. Keen to get more involved in the delivery of health and safety she took a level 3 NVQ health and safety qualification.

She then started doing site safety inspections and began studying for her NEBOSH Diploma. This led to greater responsibilities, in particular

the drawing up of health and safety policies and procedures.

A change in approach and personnel at UK Power Networks meant that Dawn was asked to focus more on occupational health. Having learnt that NEBOSH had developed a new qualification - the Certificate in Health & Well-being - she approached her employers with a view to studying with NEBOSH approved course provider Stunit. As an employer that regularly supports its staff to achieve NEBOSH qualifications, UK Power Networks were all for it and Dawn enrolled.

When we spoke to Dawn she had only just taken her exam and was still waiting for her results, but she told us she had already found a lot of what she’d learnt on the course “really useful” in her role.

Dawn says taking the NEBOSH Health and Well-being Certificate helped her develop new ideas and highlighted the kind of health

Achieving...

CASE STUDY:Dawn Leighton

12

“The course really emphasises the importance of HR, occupational health and health & safety all working together to move forward and actually try and change the culture of an organisation”



issues she’d like to analyse more closely at work. She also believes the course gave her more confidence in addressing difficult issues such as stress, anxiety and depression. She feels more comfortable now raising questions in these areas and encouraging line managers to address such matters.

Dawn also feels that the course has helped bring those responsible for health and safety and those tasked with HR (Human Resources) closer together.

“The course really emphasises the importance of HR, occupational health and health & safety all working together to move forward and actually try and change the culture of an organisation. With health, until you can change the culture and become a more open organisation, issues such as mental health can be put to one side.”

Dawn told us she believes all line managers would benefit from taking the NEBOSH Health and Well-being Certificate. “It should be something that line managers should be incorporating into their everyday activities, regardless of where they work,” she said. “Ill health is very costly to employers. Early intervention can make all the difference.”

Discover what the NEBOSH Health and Well-being Certificate can do for your employer and for your career. Visit www.neboshhealthandwellbeing.org.uk.

1312

...will travel

Joel Nedamo has seen a lot of the world. He was born, educated and began his working career in the Philippines. His degree in Civil Engineering from the Mapua Institute of Technology in Manila helped him secure work in many different places such as Kuwait, Taiwan, Singapore and Abu Dhabi.

But it’s another qualification that’s brought him even more success recently and it’s a qualification Joel hopes one day to take back home with him.

A few years ago, when working for a contracting company in the construction sector, Joel decided

to develop his knowledge of health and safety. He saw it as a useful career move and one that might lead to a more interesting role.

His target was to gain a NEBOSH International Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety. But rather than jumping straight in at the deep end he chose to take the NEBOSH International General Certificate first, which he passed in 2008.

Two years later he gained his International Diploma and Joel now has a very interesting and challenging role. He is responsible for all

Have knowledge...

CASE STUDY:Joel Nadamo

14

“I need a lot of information to be successful in my work and I have been able to develop this because of my Diploma. It’s a very advanced qualification”



aspects of health and safety at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The DWTC complex includes a 39 storey tower, housing offices for some of the world’s largest and most well-known businesses, as well as eight exhibition halls, the Dubai International Convention Centre and residential apartments.

Joel’s responsibilities include reviewing all risk assessments, method statements, policies and activities at the centre. As this includes the operations of all visiting contractors and exhibitors he’s a very busy man! And as Joel says himself, it means he needs to know a lot about health and safety.“I need a lot of information to be successful in my work and I have been able to develop this because of my Diploma. It’s a very advanced qualification.

“Taking my NEBOSH International General Certificate broadened my knowledge and gave me more confidence. It put me on the pathway to achieving my Diploma and helped me secure the role I now have.”

Joel believes so strongly in the value of his qualifications he has set himself a long term goal of delivering NEBOSH courses in the Philippines, to try and improve health and safety standards there.

1514

...can be incredibly rewarding

Success can sometimes take more than just hard work and commitment. Sometimes it’s also about taking chances, making sacrifices and being courageous.

After almost ten years working in a profession that he studied long and hard for, Dhayalan Jeyaram had the courage to reassess his life, change career and then move himself and his family almost 7,000 kilometres to another country. His strong decision is now paying off in more ways than one.

Born in the Madurai district of Tamil Nadu state in southern India, Dhayalan gained a good education, culminating in a post graduate qualification in cardiorespiratory physical therapy. A varied career followed with Dhayalan using his knowledge to teach others as well as care for his patients.

However, people’s lives change. Dhayalan had started a family and despite his passion for his work, after almost ten years he began to

accept that financially he needed a career that would bring greater reward. He researched various options and decided that construction was the way forward.

He felt that his professional experience would be best suited to a role in health and safety. Passing the NEBOSH International General Certificate (IGC) with distinction helped Dhayalan to make the switch.

There has been a massive escalation in construction activity in Qatar in the Middle East in recent years. In March 2012 Dhayalan moved his family from India to Qatar to take advantage of the opportunities this has created.

He now works for UrbaCon Trading & Contracting (UCC); helping to manage safety on a range of projects in Qatar, including most recently the Anantara Doha Island Resort.

Starting afresh...

CASE STUDY:Dhayalan Jeyeram

16

“The NEBOSH Diploma in Environmental Management has really helped Dhayalan to stand out from the crowd”



Dhayalan has continued his studies. He is making good progress with his NEBOSH International Diploma and is now preparing for a MSc in Occupational Health, Safety and Environment with Greenwich University.

However, his recent performance with the NEBOSH Diploma in Environmental Management has really helped Dhayalan to stand out from the crowd. Environmental management is important to UCC, and they value the NEBOSH qualification highly.

The knowledge Dhayalan gained by completing this qualification has really helped him to “better deliver his duties relating to environmental management”. As a result of his pass, he was immediately promoted to the position of HSE Engineer and his salary almost doubled.

Not only did he pass, but he also gained the highest mark out of everyone taking the qualification in 2013/14, making him NEBOSH ‘Best Candidate’ Award winner.

Dhayalan is glad to have made his switch in career. Not only has it led to wider recognition for his abilities, but perhaps most importantly he feels it has brought greater security and stability for those closest to him.

1716

...to take your Diploma?

It’s been said that fear isn’t necessarily a bad thing. For Lisa Pearson, this certainly appears to be true!

Lisa recently achieved the joint highest mark for her NEBOSH National Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety exams, after already having been recognised for the top mark for Unit C. She says a little bit of fear had something to do with it.

“I have a need to know,” explained Lisa. “If I went into an exam without knowing, or at least thinking I knew all that I could, I’d be in absolute panic mode!”

This resulted in a lot of hard work and revision, leading to Lisa’s achievement of top Diploma candidate. But a little bit of fear hasn’t been Lisa’s only motivation for success with NEBOSH. She also sees her qualification as a passport to career development.

Lisa left school aged 16 and went to work for ICI in a general administrative role. She was soon given an extra task of safety, health and environmental (SHE) “champion”. It was all part of a behavioural safety initiative at ICI, designed to generate worker involvement in SHE. She enjoyed the task so much she ended up moving into the health and

Should you be afraid...

CASE STUDY:Lisa Pearson

18

“...a little bit of fear hasn’t been Lisa’s only motivation for success with NEBOSH. She also sees her qualification as a passport to career development”



safety department full-time, passed her NEBOSH General Certificate and started her NEBOSH Diploma.

Unfortunately, a series of redundancies at the ICI Huddersfield site where Lisa worked meant she had to find another job elsewhere and put her studies on hold. She worked at a few different places before settling into her current role at greetings cards company Hallmark, where she is a health and safety manager.

At Hallmark Lisa was able to restart her Diploma. She needed to convert from the old Diploma 1 course to the current NEBOSH Diploma and she decided to complete all of her studies in one year.

Passing the Diploma was all part of a bigger plan for Lisaand for Hallmark. The company had not had a CharteredMember of IOSH (CMIOSH) on its health and safety team before. Lisa was able to attain this membership thanks to her NEBOSH Diploma success and has now moved into the position of Group Health and Safety Manager for Hallmark.

Isn’t it funny where a little bit of fear can get you?

1918

...and safety role-model

Although just 27 years of age, Maisaa Nasrallah is already having a major influence on the development of health, safety and environmental practice and policy in her homeland, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).However, Maisaa’s journey to where she is now has not always been easy. Like many women throughout the world, she has had to fight hard to establish herself in an arena of male-dominated industries.

Her original career choice was strongly inspired by her Iraqi father, who moved to the UAE around 40 years ago. He is an electricalengineer with his own consultancy. Maisaa is one of six siblings who followed in her father’s engineering footsteps, by studying chemical engineering in Jordan.

When Maisaa graduated in 2007 and moved back to the UAE, she struggled to find a position to match her degree. What she noticed however, was that health and

safety was an emerging issue, and so she decided to take a course leading to a NEBOSH International General Certificate in order to “use her time wisely.”

“My NEBOSH International General Certificate changed everything,” she told us. “At the time in the Middle East it was something new. It was very topical, almost exotic, with very few people offering this course. Shortly after completing the certificate, I was hired for my NEBOSH qualification, not for my degree, so it turned out to be a life changing decision.”

To say that Maisaa threw herself in at the deep-end would be an understatement. She was appointed by the government as a project engineer on what was the biggest non-oil and gas project in the UAE - a $1.2 billion investment to build an integrated steelworks complex. Her role was to advise on occupational health and safety on site.

A health...

CASE STUDY:Maisaa Nasrallah

20

“Shortly after completing the certificate, I was hired for my NEBOSH qualification, not for my degree, so it turned out to be a life changing decision.”



“It was, shall we say, challenging because not only did I have to prove myself as a graduate, I also had to prove myself as a female,” she explained. “Not just with the local workforce, but also with consultants from the UK and contractors from Italy.”

Her strong contribution meant she was soon accepted on site and three and a half years on this project taught Maisaa a great deal. To develop her skills further she successfully completed her NEBOSH International Diploma, which in turn led to a new role as a HSE Consultant, working on a variety of high profile projects in the region.

Maisaa is now a senior consultant for Lloyd’s Register. She is currently working with the regulator for the utilities sector in Abu Dhabi, developing baseline surveys and benchmarking for the sector. It is vital work that integrates health, safety and environmental procedures into the licensing system for the industry.

2120

...leads to success

Around twenty years ago, Mark Davenport’s father gave him some simple but important advice when he was offered a job as a trainee scaffolder. He told him to stay safe and also to care for the safety of others. It’s advice he has followed ever since.

When he left school, Mark actually started out as a trainee chef, but the hours and culture didn’t suit. The only time he got to socialise was on a Tuesday night and he missed going out with his friends. So when he was told about a job in scaffolding, he thought he would give it a try. He loved it right from the start.

In fact, one of Mark’s first jobs was working on the construction of an oil refinery in the South East. The scaffolding was over 300 feet high. Mark has no real fear of heights, quite the opposite in fact, but what he enjoyed most was the camaraderie on site. He got on with everyone he worked with, having a laugh but at the same time never being afraid to speak up when he believed people’s safety was being compromised.

“It’s something I’ve always done.” he explained. “I don’t mind challenging people. I’ve worked for many years on site and there’s not much I haven’t seen. I think that’s one of

Sound fatherly advice...

CASE STUDY:Mark Davenport

22

“Mark says that having his NEBOSH qualifications gives him is the ability to present a case for safety policy and improvements at management and board level.”



the reasons I ended up with a health and safety role. As everyone says on site now, ‘there’s nothing you can get past Mark’.”

A few years ago he was asked to become a health and safety advisor by his employer. His experience was a huge advantage, but Mark wanted to make sure his knowledge was up to scratch. So he took the NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety.

“To be honest I’d never been academically minded at school, so I found the General Certificate quite tough. But once I got into it I managed to pass just short of a distinction, which I was really pleased with.”

Mark says the National General Certificate gave him a platform to progress from. He chose to take the specialist NEBOSH National Certificate in Construction Health and Safety. As Mark had earlier passed his NEBOSH National General Certificate, he needed to only take units 2 & 3 of this qualification covering the management and control of hazards in construction and the practical application.

Mark says that having his NEBOSH qualifications gives him is the ability to present a case for safety policy and improvements at management and board level.

“When I go to directors and explain the reasons for doing something, they understand now that it’s not just Mark saying ‘you need to do this’ but that I’m actually protecting them, because it’s competent advice and often it’s the law.”

2322

...who left school at 16!

No one in Claire Jones’ family had ever stayed on at school past the age of 16. So she hardly gave sixth form a second thought, despite gaining a reasonable set of O levels in 1986.

Instead, just like her 6 brothers and sisters after her, Claire went looking for a job. She managed to find a YTS position with a local chemical company in West Cumbria where she worked as a junior process operator. She impressed her employer, won a YTS Trainee of the Year Award and was kept on.

Claire began to realise her lack of higher level education might hold her back. She wanted a career, so set out to achieve a set of qualifications that would take her further. This began with an ONC in chemical engineering - equivalent to an A level - then a HNC in chemistry and an honours degree in chemistry in 1994.

Claire got the promotions she was after, to assistant development chemist and then to assistant technical sales manager. She enjoyed sales. Claire is a people person. She also enjoyed the travelling that went with the job.

Unfortunately, in the early 90s her employers decided to embark on bulk manufacturing, withdrawing from the areas where Claire was responsible. They did not want to let her go, so offered her a temporary role in health and safety until something more suitable came up in the technical field.

Claire admits she was “devastated” by this. She had a stereotypical view of health and safety at the time - “all clipboards and interfering!” Fortunately Claire had a good manager, who recognised her desire for learning. He suggested she did a NEBOSH General Certificate.

The course changed Claire’s mind completely. She wanted to know more and began to see health and safety as a challenge that really suited her. She was also strongly affected by an incident at work. A popular colleague fell from height and was severely injured. The incident angered everyone at the plant and she was determined to do all she could to stop something like that happening again.

One area she found particularly interesting was fire safety. As well as being fascinated by

Not bad for a YTS’er...

CASE STUDY:Claire Jones

24

“Claire had a stereotypical view of health and safety at the time - “all clipboards and interfering!”



the subject, she enjoyed working closely with the local fire brigade. The other girls at the plant used to look on with envy whenever she got to show them around!

Claire was appointed safety adviser in 1995 and became safety manager in 2000. In 2005 the plant where Claire worked closed and she had to find a new job. For a while she worked for a contractor at the Sellafield plant. The Sellafield Ltd safety team were impressed by her knowledge and experience, so they offered her a position there in 2007.

She’s now a Construction EHS Improvements Manager employed by Sellafield Ltd. Her collection of NEBOSH qualifications has grown considerably. She’s passed her Diploma with credit, as well as the National Certificate in Construction Safety and Health, again with credit.

In 2009 she not only gained her NEBOSH Certificate in Fire Safety and Risk Management, but passed with distinction and achieved the highest mark award.

Claire isn’t stopping there either. She’s just passed her NEBOSH Environmental Certificate with distinction, which leaves only the Environmental Diploma for what would be pretty much a full set!

Not bad for someone who didn’t give a lot of thought to further education when she left school. Well done Claire, we’re impressed!

2524

NOTES:

26

NEBOSHDominus WayMeridian Business Park LeicesterLE19 1QWUnited KingdomT: +44 (0)116 263 4700 F: +44 (0)116 282 4000E: [email protected]

Registered in England and WalesCompany number 2698100Registered charity number: 1010444

NEBOSH, the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health, is a world leading provider of Health, Safety and Environmental Qualifications

©Copyright NEBOSH 2014

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