Sample Practical application (IGC3)

NEBOSH INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE

IGC3 THE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Ca didates o servatio sheet

Sheet number 1 of 5
Student name:
G Gardner
Student number:
********
Place inspected:
Education Development Date of Inspection
26/08/20**
centre
Observation
Risk Control measures
Timescale
Hazards and Consequences
Immediate and longer term actions
1. Risk of vehicles speeding and
causing road traffic accidents
due to poor signage on access
roads to school and main
buildings.

Inform school workers and parents

of speed limits on access roads. Fix
temporary speed limit signs.
Re-paint speed signs on road.

M
L

2. Risk of traffic accident due to

narrow sharp bend on access
road to rear car park.

3. Risk of traffic accident due to

undesignated car parking in
several areas that prevent
vision of road and cause driving
over footpaths to reach these
areas.

Email all school workers to increase

awareness.
Get
the
school
managers to contact parents.

Yearly

Immediately

Change observation mirror to large

one. Erect signs warning of sharp
bends.

1 2 months

Monitor effects of measures. Look

into feasibility of installing traffic
light system.

Every 6 months

1 month
Monitor the wear and damage to
painted signs during site inspection

4. Risk of trip due to potholes in

surface of footpath

Immediately

Inform school workers by email not

to park in undesignated areas.
Erect bollards where possible. Erect
no parking signs.
Site maintenance team to monitor
and issue warning letter to
offenders. Discuss with Human
Resources manager.

Immediately

2 months

On going

Barrier off around affected area.

Erect warning sign.

Immediately

Repair / resurface footpath.

1 -2 months

Monitor the surface condition of all

footpaths on site during site Yearly
inspection
Key: Risk: H=High, M=Medium, L=Low. Actions: I= Immediate, M=Medium, L=Long term. N/a= Not applicable.

NEBOSH INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE

IGC3 THE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Ca didates o servatio sheet

Sheet number 2 of 5
Student name:
G Gardner
Student number:
********
Place inspected:
Education Development Date of Inspection
26/08/20**
centre
Observation
Risk Control measures
Timescale
Hazards and Consequences
Immediate and longer term actions
5. Risk of electric shock from
active communication mast due
to missing padlock from gates
and electrical hazard warning
signs at the access gates.

6. Risk of tripping due to

damaged concrete step leading
to reception and school
pathway.

7. Risk to personal safety of

receptionist due to lone
working.

8. Risk of Electrocution or fire

controlled by main fuse board
in small hall corridor being
located in secure cupboard and
having 5 yearly inspections and
testing.

9. Risk of trip due to worn tape

around access hatch in floor in
main corridor

10. Risk to health by exposure

to asbestos by report showing
location of asbestos in stair
nosing and floor tiles plus
regular inspection.

Lock gates, fit temporary electrical

hazard sign.

Immediately

Fit permanent electrical hazard

signs. Monitor to ensure gates are
padlocked,
particularly
after
maintenance worker visits.

3 month /
Continual

Arrange on going inspection of

mast security and that warning
signs stay in good condition
Apply hazard tape to worn parts of
step.

6 months

Immediately

Concrete repairs to steps.

2 3 months

Yearly

Monitor all access steps for damage

during site inspection
Review security in reception area.

Install panic alarm. Attend training.

2 months

Review work patterns causing lone

working. Initiate test protocols for
security
N/a

Every 6 months

Ensure fuse board is closed and

locked. Accessed by competent
workers only.

On-going

5 Years

Maintenance team to monitor 5

yearly inspections and testing.
Barrier off with warning sign.

Replace tape.

Same day

Administration manager to monitor

tape for wear.
Ensure locations of asbestos are
also recorded in asbestos risk
register.
Inspection of area for damage.
Keep asbestos report for reference
and provide details in asbestos risk
register to contractors.

On-going

M
L

Immediately

N/a

Immediately

Immediately

Monthly
On-going

NEBOSH INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE

IGC3 THE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Ca didates o servatio sheet

Sheet number 3 of 5
Student name:
G Gardner
Student number:
********
Place inspected:
Education Development Date of Inspection
26/08/20**
centre
Observation
Risk Control measures
Timescale
Hazards and Consequences
Immediate and longer term actions
11. Risk of upper limb injury /
eye strain due to unsuitable,
non-adjustable chair for display
screen equipment (DSE) user in
general office.

12. Risk of trip due to trailing

cables of many portable
appliances in general office i.e.
fans, electric heaters and paper
shredders.

13. Risk to fire due to many

document folders stored under
desks in education workers
office, next to electrical sockets
and cables.

14. Risk of falling due to

working on an insecure short
ladder during lone working in
store cupboard.

Ensure workstations are assessed

for suitability for all new workers
and carry out online risk awareness
training.

3 weeks

Ensure workers are complying with

your display screen equipment use
policy.

On-going

Carry out regular reassessments of

display
screen
equipment
workstations and workers.
Tape down cables

Yearly

Provide portable rubber covers for

cables. Consider relocating sockets
to avoid need to trail cable.

1 month

Relocate sockets where possible.

Continue to monitor where cables
are situated and monitor for
damage. Ensure training is carried
out with workers.
Email workers to warn of the fire
risk, look for temporary storage for
document folders.

3 6 months
Every 6 months.

Erect suitable shelving to store files

on. Ensure workers undertake fire
awareness training.

1 months

Monitor on-going for correct

storage and fire risks. Ensure
workers have annual updates
Email workers to warn them of the
potential hazards. Carry out risk
assessment for working on ladders.

Yearly

Use of ladde s
carried out.

1 month

Continue to monitor work practices

with ladders.

On-going

t ai i g to

Immediately

Immediately

Immediately

NEBOSH INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE

IGC3 THE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Ca didates o servatio sheet

Sheet number 4 of 5
Student name:
G Gardner
Student number:
********
Place inspected:
Education Development Date of Inspection
26/08/20**
centre
Observation
Risk Control measures
Timescale
Hazards and Consequences
Immediate and longer term actions
15. Risk of back injury due to
place heavy files under desks
(with poor access) in education
workers office.

16. Risk of eye strain and trips

controlled by good lighting in
main corridor.

17. Risk of electric shock due to

several electrical items having
out of date portable appliance
testing (PAT) test.

18. Risk of hot water burns due

to no warning sign on hot water
boiler in kitchen.

19. Risk of boxes falling from

shelves on to people due to
them overhanging shelves in
kitchen.

Email staff to warn of the manual

handling hazard, look for temporary
storage for document folders.

Immediately

Erect suitable shelving to store files

on. Ensure workers undertake
manual
handling
awareness
training.

1 month

Monitor correct storage of folders

and manual handling awareness
training.
N/a

On-going

Regular lighting unit maintenance

by competent person.

On-going

Light level checks carried out and

recorded by competent person.
Isolate all electrical items that have
out of date PAT test.

2 years

PAT tests to be carried out on items

by competent person.

2 weeks

Regular checks for all portable

electrical equipment.
Put up temporary sign to warn staff
of very hot water.

Yearly

Ensure permanent warning sign is

fixed to boiler.

1 week

Monitor that sign remains in place

and is legible.
Remove overhanging boxes

On-going

Re-organise boxes on shelves to

ensure all boxes fit onto shelves
correctly and are not overhanging.

2 weeks

Monitor that boxes continue to be

correctly storage on shelves.

On-going

N/a

Immediately

Immediately

Immediately

NEBOSH INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE

IGC3 THE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Ca didates o servatio sheet

Sheet number 5 of 5
Student name:
G Gardner
Student number:
********
Place inspected:
Education Development Date of Inspection
26/08/20**
centre
Observation
Risk Control measures
Timescale
Hazards and Consequences
Immediate and longer term actions
20. Risk of legionella controlled
by regular inspection of water
supplied from taps and
temperature of boiler in kitchen

21. Risk of slips on ice on

walkways between buildings
due to a lack of equipment for
dealing with possible adverse
weather conditions as winter
approaches.

22. Risk of burns due to workers

carrying several cups of coffee
in corridor

23. Risk of delayed first aid

treatment due to eye wash in
corridor being out of date and
unusable.

24. Risk of ankle sprains due to

poor storage of materials in
general office area, uneven
floor and poor lighting in
corridor.

N/a

N/a

Ensure relevant senior managers

undergo legionella training.

3 month

Ensure inspection and recording

continues by competent person.

Yearly

Allocate responsibilities

1 month

Monitor weather
winter approaches.

2 months

Provide grit / salt in suitable

container.
Remind staff of risk of scalding

Provide trays to carry cups.

1 week

Ensure trays are used. Provide

reminders at worker involvement
meetings
Replace eye wash

Monthly

Implement system of weekly checks

of eye wash and other first aid
equipment.

1 week

Team meetings to discuss and

prepare procedure for replacing
first aid equipment when out of
date for use.
Move all excess materials to store
or waste bin

1 month

Install more lights and review floor

condition

1 month

Inspect light levels and materials

storage regularly.

3 months

forecasts

as

Next 3 months

Immediately

1 day

1 week

MANAGEMENT REPORT
1. Introduction
This report follows a workplace inspection of the education development centre on the 26 th August
20** and identifies good and poor practices. The centre has a large education development building,
one primary school, one short stay pupil referral unit and a day nursery. The property is owned and
maintained by the local council. There is an access road from the main road, which runs around the
school, between buildings and then through to the rear car parks.
The education development centre is occupied by 370 workers whose roles revolve around
edu atio attai e t, i p o e e t a d i lusio . Ma
o ke s a e out ea h o ke s a d isit
schools, children centres, and homes. As a result, access and egress to the building is heavily used.
Potential hazards include slips, trips, and falls, musculoskeletal injury and access and egress
arrangements.
2. Executive summary
It was pleasing to observe a high standard of housekeeping. There was an appropriate amount of
lighting inside and outside the buildings. The welfare facilities were of good standard, i.e. clean and
plenty of toilets and washrooms for the amount of workers.
However, during the inspection it was identified that some areas posed a risk of serious injury or ill
health and were in need of improvement. Areas of concern were vehicle movement through the
school site and risks of electric shock, due to uncontrolled access to the communications mast and
several items of portable electrical equipment being out of date with their portable appliance testing
(PAT) test. Also, there was an increased risk of fire and manual handling injury due to many
document files stored under workers desks, next to electrical cables and sockets. These and other
important observations are discussed in the findings part of the report.
Most of the problems that were observed were related to a lack of maintenance and a general lack
of understanding of the need for good health and safety practice. Recommendations include
refresher training and maintenance of signs and electrical equipment, all of relatively low cost,
particularly when related to the risks observed. Two areas observed that were under good control
were the testing and recording for legionella and asbestos.
Details of all observations made during the inspection are attached at the end of this report.
3. Main Findings
3.1 Observation 1 Risk of road traffic accidents speed limit, hazards and parking
The a ess oad that u s th ough the s hool site is hea il used, as a
o ke s do out ea h
work. In addition, visitors to the site, parents and children use the road to come into school and the
day nursery. It was noted that many of the painted road sins were worn away, so users would not be
aware of speed restrictions. This presented a significant risk of vehicles speeding and causing road
traffic accidents. Also, there were many sharp bends in the road, which would increase the potential
risk from speeding. The additional problem of vehicles being parked in undesignated areas
prevented drivers having proper vision of the road and obstructed footpaths. In view of the

vulnerability of the many pedestrians in the area, this could easily result in a major injury or fatality.
Any claim for damages would be very high and this type of accident could have very high
o se ue es to the s hool s eputatio .
Speeding vehicles and vehicles inappropriately parked make access and egress unsafe, not only for
school workers, but other car users and pedestrians. These risks may be seen to contravene the ILO
Occupational Safety and Health Convention C155, Article 16 (1), which requires employers to
provide workplaces that are safe.
School workers, parents, children and visitors should be alerted immediately of the speed limit,
sharp bend hazard and parking problem, for example by email and letters handed out. This will incur
very little cost, mainly time and paper. Temporary signs should be made and located on the route
into the school and where parked vehicles cause an obstruction. This can be done by downloading
signs from the internet, printing and laminating them using school facilities, costs for this should be
limited to 30. Maintenance work should be carried out during the next four weeks to repaint speed
limit signs and erect a sing warning of the sharp bends, at a cost of 500 approximately. Signs and
bollards should be erected to prevent the unauthorised parking; this is likely to cost approximately
1,000. All limit signs and restriction parking should be monitored yearly during the site inspection.
The sum of money necessary to make improvements is small relative to the risk of serious injury that
may be caused by the hazards.
3.2 Observation 5 Risk of electric shock access to communications mast
It was observed that the gates restricting access to the communications mast were not secured by a
padlock and there were no signs warning of the electrical hazard within the restricted area. This
meant that anyone could enter the restricted area and be at risk of electric shock. The school has a
large number of children on site who may be attracted by the electrical equipment and could have
entered the area without difficulty. The absence of warning signs indicating an electrical hazard
could someone to believe they were entering a safe area.
Failing to restrict access to the electrical equipment may be considered a breach of the ILO
Occupational Safety and Health Convention c155, Article 16(1), which requires workplaces
machinery, equipment and processes to be safe and without risk to health. Though the risk of
immediate danger from electricity due to someone entering the restricted area is not high it is
significantly increased by the failure to prevent entry.
With the co-operation of maintenance worker for the site a padlock was added to the fates to secure
them. The padlock was available for their purpose, but had not been fitted to the gate following a
visit from a maintenance contractor, therefore there was no new cost related to this control
measure. Temporary electrical hazard warning signs should be fitted until permanent signs can be
obtained. The cost of these temporary and permanent signs is likely to be about 250. In the
medium term, the supervisor of school maintenance work should ensure the padlock is only
removed to allow authorised entry and refitted immediately on completion of this work. The
security of access to the communication mast should be monitored as part of the site security
arrangements, this may require a small amendment to the contract of the security company that
does this work, but it is expected that is could be added with little or no cost.

3.3 Observation 13 and 15 Risk of manual injury and fire document files stored under desks
It was identified that many of the workers stored document files under their desks, occupying a large
amount of space. These files were situated next to trailing electrical cables, which were plugged into
extension leads. The three elements of the fire triangle were present oxygen, fuel (paper files) and
heat (electrical cables and sockets). This combination presented a risk of fire occurring and although
the fire would start in the office area there is a risk that it could spread and affect the whole centre.
This would be a serious risk to all workers and children. No fire risk assessment had been carried out
and fire risk controls were inadequate, contravening the ILO Guidelines on Occupational Safety and
Health Management Systems (ILO OSH) 2001, which require risk assessment and the application of
control measures.
These poor storage arrangements not only increase the chances of a fire starting and spreading
rapidly, but also pose a risk of back injury when office workers have to bend and assume a very poor
posture when retrieving the files. This poor manual handling arrangement could quickly lead to
serious injury of an office worker and long term absence from work. The office workers are all
experienced and specialise in their education field, therefore finding temporary replacement
workers would not be easy and this would be very damaging to the educational service provided.
The storage arrangements do not comply with the ILO Occupational Safety and Health Convention
C155, Article 16 (1) and (2), in that manual handling risks should be avoided where reasonably
practicable and where risk remain they are minimised by appropriate protection measures.
Workers should be reminded of the fire and manual handling risk as soon as possible, those workers
not immediately available should be emailed. The files should be promptly removed into temporary
storage, at a ost of o ke s ti e a d sto age o es, hi h a e u e tl a aila le as sto k as
purchased for a recent educational project. Suitable shelving should be erected at the cost of 500
approximately. It is recommended that all office workers have fire awareness and manual handling
refresher training , incurring internal cost of worker and health and safety advisor time. The training
should be short and can be done at their monthly meeting. It is recommended that awareness
training is done as part of the annual departmental meeting, this will ensure costs are limited.
3.4 Observation 17 Risk of electric shock and fire out of date portable electrical equipment
testing
Several items of electrical equipment around the site were not displaying up to date portable
appliance testing (PAT) sticker. The absence of the sticker could mean that the equipment is
defective. The PAT sticker confirms that electrical equipment has been suitably tested as part of the
maintenance programme. The use of equipment that has not been maintained breaches ILO
Occupational Safety and Health Convention C155, Article 16 (1) requirements that equipment should
be safe, since equipment that is not maintained can lead to the risk of fire or workers experiencing
an electric shock, which may prove fatal. An injury or fatality would not only be a cost to the centre,
but also to the worker and their family. Employers have a legal duty under EWR to ensure all
portable electrical equipment is maintained. This should be clearly marked on the equipment and
recorded.
Immediate action is required to identify and isolate all items that are out of date, this would be at a
s all ost taki g a ouple of hou s of ti e a d la els to a k the out of use . Follo i g this , a

competent person (trained electrician) should carry our PAT test on this equipment, typically at a
cost of 2.00 per item. In the future, all equipment should be tested regularly and care should be
given to ensure equipment stored in cupboards is included in all tests.
4. Conclusion
Routine maintenance is identified as an area where attention is needed. The poor maintenance of
road speed limit signs and lack of portable appliance testing on electrical items were particular areas
requiring immediate management attention. Under the ILO Occupational Safety and Health
Convention C155, Article 16 (1), employers have a responsibility to ensure equipment is safe,
including the carrying out of maintenance to protect workers and others who may be in the
workplace or come into contact with their equipment.
Storing document files under desks next to electrical cables and sockets is a fire hazard. The poor
storage of files also creates a risk of manual handling injuries when workers have to retrieve the
files. This suggests a lack of appreciation of the need for good health and safety practice. Fire and
manual ha dli g isk assess e t of the sto age of files i the edu atio
o ke s offi e eed to e
carried out immediately in order to ensure the safety of workers. Education workers should have
refresher training to remind them of the importance of fire and manual handling issues. This may
indicate a wider problem, this should be evaluated as other workers may also need similar training.
All the areas identified in the findings of this report could result in injury or a fatality, which would
cause suffering to the victims and their families. Employers have a legal and moral duty of care to
take action and reduce the risk identified.
The inspection identified a number of good practices where strong management of hazards was in
place, including two important health hazards, legionella and asbestos. The good practices identified
are commended and should be continued.
Health and safety needs to be of a high priority as failure to manage risk can lead to prosecution or
o pe satio lai s, hi h a o l ha e a ad e se effe t o the e t e s eputatio a d fi a ial
position as well as the health and safety of the people involved.
I suggest that my recommendations are implemented at the earliest opportunity according to the
priority allocated to them in the next section of this report. By doing this, the centre will openly
demonstrate to all workers that their health and safety is being taken seriously at all levels of
management. Also, it will show that, in the long term, a positive health and safety culture is being
developed, which will reduce the sizeable cost attributed to accidents and enhance the reputation of
the organisation in a very competitive market place.

5. Recommendations
Ref. No.
Recommendation
3.1 (item 1, Inform
workers,
2 and 3)
parents, children and
visitors of speed limit,
road hazards and
parking restrictions by
email and handling
out letters.
3.1 (item 1, Fix temporary speed
2 and 3)
limit, hazardous bends
warning
and
no
parking signs.
3.2
Put padlock on gates
(item 5)
of
communication
tower
3.2
Fix temporary
(item 5)
electrical hazard
warning signs.
3.3 (items Remove
files
to
13 and 15) temporary storage

Likely resource implications Priority

Admin time, cost of paper. High
50 for materials.

Target date
Immediate

Download from internet, High

print and laminate using
school facilities.

Immediate

Padlock is available but was High

not being used.

Immediate

Download from internet, High

print and laminate using
school facilities.
All education workers to High
pack into storage boxes.
Boxes are in stock
3.4
Isolate equipment that Maintenance worker time, 2 High
(Item 17)
does not have up to hours.
date PAT sticker.
3.1 (item Repaint speed limit 500, using local contractor
Medium
1,2 and 3)
signs on the road.
3.1 (item Change
observation Estimated to be 500.
Medium
mirror
to
large
one.
1,2 and 3)
Erect permanent signs
warning of sharp
bends.
3.1 (item Erect bollards where
1,2 and 3) possible.
Erect
permanent no parking
signs.
3.2
Monitor to ensure
(item 5)
gates are padlocked,
particularly
after
maintenance worker
visits.
3.3
Erect suitable shelving
(item 13 to store files on
and 15)
3.3
Ensure
employees
(item 13 undertake fire and
and 15)
manual
handling
refresher training.

Estimated to be 1,000.

Medium

Immediate

Immediate

Immediate

One month
1-2 months

1-2 months

Supervisor to check that Medium

padlock is removed to only
allow authorised access and
is re-fitted immediately after
completion of work.
500
Medium

As entry is
required

3 hours of workers time, Medium

provided by health and
safety advisor at the time of
monthly meeting.

One month

One Month

3.4
(item 17)

Competent person to
PAT test the out of
date equipment.
3.1 (item Monitor effects of
1,2 and 3) measures. Look into
feasibility of installing
traffic light system.
3.2
On-going inspection of
(item 5)
mast security and that
warning signs stay in
good condition.
3.3
Monitor
work
(items 13 practices related to
and 15)
use of storage and
provide
annual
awareness training.
3.3 (item Provide
annual
13 and 15) awareness training.

3.4
(item 17)

Approx 2.00 per item, using Medium

current contractor.

Two weeks.

Management
time
to Low
monitor
and
evaluate
feasibility.

Six months

Amendment of current Low

duties of contracted security
staff.

Six months

Manager to monitor as part Low

of weekly routines following
installation of shelving.

After
one
month,
ongoing

3 hours of workers time, Low

provided by health and
safety advisor at the time of
monthly meeting.
Ensure annual PAT Maintain worker time, to Low
tests for all portable ensure all equipment located
appliances.
and available 2 hours.
Approx 2.00 per item, using
current contractor.

One year

Annually

Candidate and course provider declarations:

For completion by the candidate:

I declare that the work submitted for this practical application assessment is my own work. I
recognise that contravention of this statement constitutes malpractice and may result in my being
subject to the penalties set out in the NEBOSH malpractice policy.
Name (Print)

_ G GARDNER

Signature
Date

_ G Gardner
_26/08/xx

For o pletio

y the ourse providers represe tative e.g. i ter al pra ti al assessor :

I declare that the work marked is identical to that received from the candidate. I recognise that
contravention of this statement constitutes malpractice and may result in my being subject to the
penalties set out in the NEBOSH malpractice policy.
Name (Print)

_ J SMITH

Signature
Date

_ J smith
_01/09/xx

For completion by the ourse providers i ter al pra ti al assessor:

I declare that the work marked is identical to that received from the candidate. I recognise that
contravention of this statement constitutes malpractice and may result in my being subject to the
penalties set out in the NEBOSH malpractice policy.
Name (Print)

_ B FERRY

Signature
Date

_ B Ferry
_06/09/xx