January - March 2015

Examiners Report
NEBOSH International
General Certificate in
Occupational Health
and Safety (IGC1)

Examiners Report
UNIT IGC1:
MANAGEMENT OF INTERNATIONAL
HEALTH AND SAFETY
JANUARY to MARCH 2015

For:

NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety

NEBOSH International Certificate in Fire Safety and Risk Management
NEBOSH International Certificate in Construction Health and Safety

CONTENTS
Introduction

General comments

Candidate performance

Learning outcomes

Examination technique

Command words

Conclusion

2015 NEBOSH, Dominus Way, Meridian Business Park, Leicester LE19 1QW
tel: 0116 263 4700

fax: 0116 282 4000

email: info@nebosh.org.uk

website: www.nebosh.org.uk

The National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health is a registered charity, number 1010444

Introduction

NEBOSH (The National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health) was formed in 1979 as
an independent examining board and awarding body with charitable status.
We offer a
comprehensive range of globally-recognised, vocationally-related qualifications designed to meet the
health, safety, environmental and risk management needs of all places of work in both the private and
public sectors.
Courses leading to NEBOSH qualifications attract around 50,000 candidates annually and are offered
by over 600 course providers, with examinations taken in over 110 countries around the world. Our
qualifications are recognised by the relevant professional membership bodies including the Institution
of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and the International Institute of Risk and Safety
Management (IIRSM).
NEBOSH is an awarding body that applies best practice setting, assessment and marking and applies
to Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) regulatory requirements.
This report provides guidance for candidates which it is hoped will be useful to candidates and tutors
in preparation for future examinations. It is intended to be constructive and informative and to promote
better understanding of the syllabus content and the application of assessment criteria.
NEBOSH 2015

Any enquiries about this report publication should be addressed to:

NEBOSH
Dominus Way
Meridian Business Park
Leicester
LE19 1QW
tel:
0116 263 4700
fax:
0116 282 4000
email: info@nebosh.org.uk

General comments

Many candidates are well prepared for this unit assessment and provide comprehensive and relevant
answers in response to the demands of the question paper. This includes the ability to demonstrate
understanding of knowledge by applying it to workplace situations.
There are other candidates, however, who appear to be unprepared for the unit assessment and who
show both a lack of knowledge of the syllabus content and a lack of understanding of how key
concepts should be applied to workplace situations.
This report has been prepared to provide feedback on standard date and on-demand IGC1
examinations sat between January and March 2015.
Feedback is presented in these key areas; examination technique, command words and learning
outcomes and is designed to assist candidates and course providers to prepare for future
assessments in this unit.
Candidates and course providers will also benefit from use of the Guide to the NEBOSH International
General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety which is available via the NEBOSH website. In
particular, the guide sets out in detail the syllabus content for IGC1 and tutor reference documents for
each Element. There are two Syllabus Guides on the NEBOSH website. For the examinations
covered in this report the Guide dated January 2013 is the file to open and refer to.
Additional guidance on command words is provided in Guidance on command words used in learning
outcomes and question papers which is also available via the NEBOSH website.
Candidates and course providers should also make reference to the IGC1 Example question paper
and Examiners feedback on expected answers which provides example questions and details
Examiners expectations and typical areas of underperformance.

Unit IGC1
Management of international health and safety
Candidate performance
This report covers all examinations, both standard and on-demand examination sittings during
January to March 2015.

Learning outcomes
Candidates performed well in these areas of the syllabus:
4.2

Explain the principles and practice of risk assessment

Full details of the content of this learning outcome and the others discussed in this report are set out in
the Guide to the NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety
(January 2013) and it would be beneficial for course providers and candidates to refer to that Guide.
There are currently two Syllabus Guides to the International General Certificate on the NEBOSH
website and the relevant Guide for the period of this report is the January 2013 version.
Candidates need to be able to demonstrate understanding of the meaning of hazard, risk and risk
assessment, the objectives of risk assessment, distinction between different types of incident, risk
assessors, the criteria for a suitable and sufficient risk assessment, identification of hazards,
identifying those at risk, evaluating risk, recording and reviewing risk assessments and special case
applications.
Within this period there were significant differences in performance by candidates on questions where
this was the learning outcome. Many candidates performed well and gained good marks, but there
were others who performed more weakly with resultant lower marks for questions related to risk
assessments.
1.2

Explain the moral, social and economic reasons for maintaining and promoting good
standards of health and safety in the workplace

Candidates need to understand the size of the health and safety problem, societal expectations of
good standards of health and safety, the need to provide a safe place of work and other contributions
to good standards and the business case for health and safety.
There were a number of good answers by candidates to questions where this learning outcome was
covered. In particular, questions requiring understanding of the moral, social and economic reasons
for good standards of health and safety were well answered. However, where a question required
more depth on these reasons, some candidates performed less well. Some candidates appeared to
know that there are moral, social and economic reasons for good standards but were unable to be
clear about the detail of those reasons, for example what are the economic reasons for good
standards of health and safety
Candidates need to be aware of the scope of learning outcome 1.2 and have, through study and
tuition, developed an understanding of its content.
1.3

Explain the role of national governments and international bodies in formulating a

framework for the regulation of health and safety

This learning outcome covers employers responsibilities, workers responsibilities and rights, the role
of enforcement agencies and consequences of non-compliance, international standards and
conventions (ISO and ILO) and sources of information on national standards.

Generally, candidates were able to show good understanding of the responsibilities of employers and
of workers and the potential consequences for an organisation where they are subject to enforcement
by an enforcing agency.
Candidates need to be aware of the scope of learning outcome 1.3 and to develop an understanding
of its content.
The following learning outcomes have been identified as being the most challenging area of the
syllabus for candidates in this period:
3.4

Explain how health and safety behaviour at work can be improved

Candidates need to understand the importance of securing management commitment, promoting

health and safety standards by leadership and example, and the appropriate use of disciplinary
procedures, competent personnel, effective communication within the organisation and training.
There appears to have been an issue of candidates depth of knowledge of this learning outcome.
Where questions were asked that covered learning outcome 3.4, many candidates could provide
some valid points in their answers but not the breadth or depth to be able to obtain a good mark for
the question. Some examples of weaknesses observed were that some candidates could list ways to
communicate health and safety information but not to detail the relative merits and problems with
different ways. Some answers related to competence did not provide sufficient detail and issues that
can influence the effectiveness of a safety committee were not well understood. Questions relating to
the differences between informing and consulting workers were generally limited.
Although performance on this learning outcome was relatively weak, some candidates who had
through their study and tuition understood the content and were able to give good answers and gain
good marks.
2.3

Describe the key features and appropriate content of an effective health and safety policy

This learning outcome requires candidates to understand that a policy states the overall aims of an
organisation in terms of health and safety performance, defines the roles and responsibilities of people
within the organisation, specifies arrangements for achieving general and specific aims, when a policy
may need review and standards and guidance relating to health and safety policy.
There was an inability to identify a range of potential targets that might be included in a health and
safety policy and to say why it is important that health and safety responsibilities are made clear.
There was also a limited understanding of what might be included in the arrangements section of a
policy and understanding of the concept of benchmarking.
4.2

Explain the principles and practice of risk assessment

Where questions were asked that covered this learning outcome there was a significant variation in
performance by candidates from strong to weak.
Areas of weakness included special case applications. Performance was noted to be limited where
understanding of risk assessments related to work by a pregnant worker and work by lone workers
was required.
Some candidates appeared to have learnt a limited amount about risk assessments and then provided
that content in their answer, even though that was not what the particular question asked on the
question paper. There is further comment about areas of examination technique that need
improvement later in this report.
Risk assessments can be an area of the syllabus for Unit IGC1 where candidates may over rely on
practical knowledge gained through their work, that is where candidates try to answer questions
mainly from that work experience. It is important that candidates do study the full content of the
syllabus and its learning outcomes and to make sure that the practical knowledge they have is
enhanced by the outcome of study and tuition.

Examination technique
The following examination techniques were identified as the main areas of improvement for
candidates:
Candidates misread/misinterpreted the question
This weakness was observed frequently during this period. It can lead to a candidate missing out on
all of the marks available for a question and can be a significant factor in determining whether or not a
pass standard is reached.
There appear to be different reasons why candidates make this error including candidates not reading
the question carefully and ensuring that the candidate understands what is required of them before
beginning to write their answer. For example, a question may ask a candidate to identify sources of
information that would help tackle a health and safety risk. The answer needs to be about sources of
information but a candidate who has not carefully read and considered the question may provide an
answer detailing the causes of the problem and thereby miss out on marks. Others reasons are
candidates answering a question that they hoped to find in the paper rather than the one that they
have been asked; and candidates who could not answer the question asked in the examination and
have set down what they do know in the hope of picking up a mark.
Candidates need to be reminded to always read and re-read the question carefully and to ensure that
they understand what is required. Reminding candidates that this is essential, even when they face
the inevitable time pressure of an examination, will help them. Candidates who can practise questions
in examination-like conditions and receive feedback should be more confident in answering questions
in the examination and be less likely to make this error.

Candidates repeated the same point but in different ways

This error can occur where candidates have not considered the question and planned their answer
before setting out to write it down. The same point that was written early in the answer then comes to
mind again and is written down again. Candidates can improve their ability to plan answers, without
spending disproportionate time doing so, and this can also be practiced to build confidence.
It can also be the case that a candidate has limited knowledge of a question topic and having no other
points to write may repeat one that they have provided earlier in the answer. This is a weakness in
knowledge rather than of examination technique.

Candidates did not respond effectively to the command word

There is more detailed comment on command words in the command word section. There is a
pattern, seen during this period but also previously, that questions where the command word is
identify are generally better answered than questions where the command word requires more depth
in the answer. Candidates need to understand what is required by each command word. Practise
answering questions and receiving feedback on their compliance with each command word will help
candidates.
It may be that some candidates have limitations in their use of written English and that the
requirements of some command words are more challenging for them. When candidates can practise
answering questions this will also help identify any who may need to improve their confidence in
written English.

Candidates unnecessarily wrote the question down

It may be helpful to remind candidates that they do not need to write down the question on their
answer script before setting out their answer. Candidates do not lose any marks if they do write down
the question but will have lost the time taken to do this.

Command words
The following command words are listed in the order identified as being the most challenging for
candidates:
Outline
In the period covered by this report, questions where outline was the command word were,
significantly, the most challenging. Although there were some weaknesses in respect of attention to
other command words, the need for candidates to understand the requirement of outline and to
comply with those requirements was the most obvious. It is likely that where candidates missed out
on marks because of lack of attention to command words, most of those marks missed, in this period,
related to outline questions.
The most common weakness where outline was the command word was that many candidates
provided only bullet points or a list of points rather than a sufficient breadth of answer to be a
reasonable outline. This is a particularly unfortunate error as it can mean that a candidate who knows
the topic of a question, that is they can provide a number of correct points, cannot gain the full marks
available because they have not followed the command word.
Candidates and course providers are advised to consider the guidance in the document Guidance on
command words used in learning outcomes and question papers which can be found on the NEBOSH
website.
It is also advised that candidates have the opportunity to practise questions in examination-like
conditions and to obtain feedback as to whether or not their answer is appropriate and in compliance
with the command word. This advice about the guidance and on practice of questions/receiving
feedback is also applicable to all of the command words discussed below.
Give
Questions where give was the command word usually required candidates to give the meaning of a
term or to give an example. When candidates did not perform well where give was the command
word, it was difficult to be sure whether this was an error of knowledge of the question topic, for
example the candidate did not know the meaning of a term, or due to lack of attention to the command
word.
Explain
There were candidates who did not appear to understand what is required in an answer where
explain is the command word. There may be a related issue of limitations in some candidates written
English skills. As mentioned above, practice of questions and the opportunity to take feedback as to
the quality of answers will be very helpful to candidates.
Describe
There were candidates who did not appear to understand what is required in an answer when
describe is the command word. Also, as with explain above, there may be a related issue where
some candidates confidence with written English does not enable them to provide a reasonable
description where this is required by a describe question.
Identify
In the period of this report, candidates generally performed most strongly when identify was the
command word. Candidates do need to know that questions that require them to identify cannot
usually be answered with a list. For example, the point training placed within an answer will not gain
a mark. A valid point in an answer to an identify question will usually need some depth but not that of
the command words reported on above. Again, the advice in the NEBOSH guidance on command
words will be useful as will the opportunity to practise questions and receive feedback.

For additional guidance, please see NEBOSHs Guidance on command words used in learning
outcomes and question papers document, which is available on our website:
www.nebosh.org.uk/students/default.asp?cref=1345&ct=2.

Conclusion
The feedback from Examiners highlighted that candidates taking the IGC1 examinations in January to
March 2015 needed most improvement in the areas of how health and safety behaviour at work can
be improved (learning outcome 3.4); key features and appropriate content of an effective health and
safety policy (learning outcome 2.3) and the principles and practice of risk assessment (learning
outcome 4.2).
With regard to examination technique, candidates should ensure that they understand the question
asked so as to avoid the error of misreading/misunderstanding the question; consider what they want
to say in their answer so that, by proportionate planning candidates do not repeat the same point in
different ways in an answer; and understand the requirements of command words that appear in
questions on the examination paper and then follow the requirement.
It is likely that practising questions and obtaining feedback will assist candidates in all of these aspects
of examination technique.

The National Examination

Board in Occupational
Safety and Health
Dominus Way
Meridian Business Park
Leicester LE19 1QW
telephone +44 (0)116 2634700
fax +44 (0)116 2824000
email info@nebosh.org.uk
www.nebosh.org.uk