The National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health is a UK-based examination board offering qualifications in health, safety, environment and wellbeing management.
It was founded in 1979 and has charitable status. It offers a range of qualifications from introductory to professional level. Around 400,000 people worldwide held a NEBOSH qualification as of 2019.
Qualifications and courses are delivered by NEBOSH’s network of approximately 600 accredited Learning Partners, which are located in countries around the world.
NEBOSH qualifications are recognised by relevant professional membership bodies including the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and the International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (IIRSM).
In 2014, NEBOSH received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Outstanding Achievement in International Trade.
In 1974, the Health and Safety at Work Act laid down general principles for the management of health and safety at work in Britain.This legislation, together with the establishment of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Health and Safety Commission (HSC) (now merged), led to more emphasis being placed on occupational safety and health by UK employers from the mid-1970s onwards.As a result, the role of the health and safety officer and health and safety manager became more widespread in British workplaces.
To meet a need for the provision of vocational qualifications in the area of occupational safety and health, NEBOSH was established in September 1979, operating from the offices of IOSH in Leicester.
At the time, the NEBOSH board, led by founding chairman Professor Richard Booth, set out its primary objective: “To improve the quality & quantity of people with vocational qualifications in Occupational Safety and Health”.
