Northumbria University going for gold in health and safety

Continuing Professional Development Courses at Northumbria University

Northumbria University, Newcastle has attained ‘Gold learning partner status’ from globally recognised health, safety and environmental qualification awarding body NEBOSH.

NEBOSH, the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health, accredits a wide range of professionally recognised qualifications, aimed at those responsible for health, safety and environmental management, in workplaces across the public and private sectors.

Northumbria has offered NEBOSH courses for more than 20 years. Now, the University has achieved the highest status in the national awarding body’s new Learning Partner Programme.

Launching in the same year that NEBOSH celebrates 40 years of business, the new Learning Partner Programme aims to recognise Learning Partners like Northumbria who go the extra mile to deliver the best learner experience.

Under the new classification system, as well as asking Learning Partners to commit to continuously improving the learner experience, NEBOSH’s new programme introduces a standard that must be met by all Learning Partners.

This standard is assessed through six Learning Excellence Principles. Bronze accreditation status shows that the Learning Partner has met the standard. Silver and Gold Learning Partner statuses are awarded to Learning Partners who can demonstrate they exceed or greatly exceed these principles. Northumbria’s success in achieving Gold status therefore demonstrates that the University ‘greatly exceeds’ the standards set out in the Learning Excellence Principles.

Stuart Naylor, Director of Relationship Management at NEBOSH, commented: “NEBOSH’s new Learning Partner Programme aims to recognise our partners who deliver the very best learning experience. The training that Gold Learning Partners like Northumbria University provide ensures our qualification holders gain the skills they need to be able to know and do effective health and safety when they return to the workplace.”

Reflecting on the recognition, Dr Michael Deary, Associate Professor and Head of NEBOSH Programmes at Northumbria, said: “We are delighted to have attained Gold status from NEBOSH in their new Learning Partner Programme. We pride ourselves on offering a high-quality learning experience for students on our courses, providing them with the platform from which to gain advancement in their careers. We are also proud that our students will be helping to create safer and healthier workplace environments, with all the improvements in morale, motivation and productivity that this brings to their organisations.

“I believe the key reason for our success in achieving ‘Gold status’ is the passion, dedication and experience of the course teaching team, who come from a range of senior practitioner backgrounds, including the Health and Safety Executive and the public and private sectors. This background allows these topics to be brought to life through the insights, stories, and the experience of people who have worked in this area for many years.”

“I think it also reflects Northumbria’s investment in a new dedicated CPD training suite, and the fact that students have the benefits of the learning and support services that are available on the campus, including IT and library facilities, student welfare services, the Student Union, and the sports centre”.

Northumbria University began offering the NEBOSH National General Certificate in 1996 and has since expanded its portfolio to include the NEBOSH Diploma, Construction Certificate, the Health and Safety at Work qualification, the NEBOSH Certificate in Environmental Management and the a new HSE Introduction to Incident Investigation. The courses are offered in a variety of attendance modes, including part-time, distance learning and block study.