A career in health and safety can be hugely rewarding. After all, there aren’t many jobs that have the potential to save lives! 

As COVID-19 causes disruption to day-to-day life across the world, for those in lockdown there are new opportunities to be had. You might use the extra time to upskill through training and qualifications or even to explore a new career path.

Shortly before COVID-19 gripped the world, NEBOSH – a leading provider of health, safety and environmental qualifications – published Do Something Great: Your Health and Safety Career. This free guide features expertise from health and safety professionals across the globe, giving readers an insight into how they made it in the sector. 

In this special feature for Employer News, some of the guide’s contributors share their hints and tips…

Is health and safety a career for me?

Health and safety is a great career choice for people seeking variety, job satisfaction and progression; there are opportunities in every industry and every country around the world. But there is one thing that ties all of the guide’s contributors together – that is the desire and passion to protect people. Shermin Shali, a HSEQ Manager, adds: “You help your colleagues to go back home safely every day. It’s challenging but interesting if you have a passion to save others.”

Muhammed Nassim is a Senior Process Safety Engineer. He agrees:

“You are fit for the job if you care not only about the lives of fellow human beings and their protection from accidents, but also the environment and its protection from harmful substances plus the reputation and economy of the industry you are in.”

As well as a desire to care for others continued learning and development was also highlighted as a benefit of a career in the sector. Su Corrin, Senior Health, Safety and Risk Manager at The Football Association, agrees:

“You need to enjoy learning, being part of a team and not like sitting at a desk. Having the ability to be a team player with a sense of humour in a fast-past environment whilst learning makes health and safety the right career for me.” 

There is also one skill that’s important to being a successful health and safety professional – communication. Nigel Clamp is Group Head of Health, Safety & Environment at Breedon Group plc. He has worked in countries around the world and shares:

“It is easy to control or get things done when you have responsibility for it. For instance, a manager has a budget and staff that report to them. However, with health and safety it is pretty much down to relationship building and influencing skills, knowing which levers to pull to change minds and behaviour, without using the law and threat of prosecution as a tool, as people simply don’t react to that.”

Training, qualifications and practical experience

The guide’s contributors have a huge range of qualifications and there are a lots of training routes that would-be health and safety professionals could take. What’s more, whether you prefer to learn face-to-face in the classroom, part-time or online, there is something to suit you. 

Gary Fallaize is the Managing Director of RRC International, one of over 600 NEBOSH-accredited Learning Partners. Gary says:

“NEBOSH’s certificate qualifications are a popular entry point for those starting on their career development. Once you have achieved this and spent some time applying the knowledge you have gained, you will be ready to look at progressing to the next step which would be a diploma-level qualification.” 

Shermin Shali adds:

“NEBOSH is not only a recognised and accepted qualification by employers but also it is a realistic course which incorporates practical knowledge for health and safety professionals.”

Putting your new knowledge and skills into practice might seem daunting as you first start out in a new career but there are plenty of opportunities to get that experience and benefit your CV. Nigel Clamps advises:

“Most organisations are looking for the knowledge of health and safety’s academic side linked to an operational understanding of how the job works. So taking an operational role whilst qualifying in the background is a good approach as you can use operational experience for the practical elements of the qualifications.”

Neil Fisher, holder of eight NEBOSH qualifications, is a fan of volunteering: “I completely understand that volunteering isn’t an option for everyone but a few hours a week doing even the most mundane of health and safety related tasks will be of great benefit and look good on your CV…the way I did it, was to self-fund my first NEBOSH certificate and speak with the existing health and safety team where I worked at the time. I asked about joining them on site visits and spending time in the office learning some of their tasks.”

What to look for in a good employer 

The employers you work for will be fundamental to your development as a health and safety professional. Their desire and passion to protect people should match your own. 

Louise Taggart is NEBOSH Ambassador and workplace safety speaker. Louise puts it very powerfully when she says:

“At the heart of your organisation’s ‘why’ should not lie ‘we want to avoid ending up in court’ or because we’ll have the authorities crawling all over us’. It should always be its desire to care for its people.”

Trystan Lewis Williams, Senior Health and Safety Advisor (North West) at Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, suggests trying to get a feel for the health and safety culture:

“You can often spot this in job adverts. For example, jobs advertised with main responsibilities such as ‘investigating accidents and carrying our risk assessments’ may indicate a more reactive, old fashioned culture…On the other hand those advertised with responsibilities such as ‘assisting managers to identify and control risks and carrying out proactive inspections’ may suggest a more proactive culture where health and safety is managed by those who manage the work.”

To find the roles and organisations that will benefit your career and personal development it’s important to use the interview process well. Claire Guise, Health and Safety Manager at Marie Curie, advises:

“Try to find out about the safety culture of the organisation and how committed they are to health and safety. Do they have the budget for safety, what does it cover, are they looking to tick boxes or to make a difference?”

Karl Simons, Chief Health, Safety & Security Officer at Thames Water, adds:

“It’s a two-way street, so ask questions. Being curious is an important quality in a health and safety professional so the employer will not judge you harshly for it. They will expect it and relish it.”

This is just a flavour of the advice that can be found in NEBOSH’s new guide, Do Something Great: Your Health and Safety Career. Download your free copy to access a huge range of advice – from CVs, interviews and mentors to training, gaining experience and choosing the right employer – and kick-start your health and safety career: www.nebosh.org.uk/dosomethinggreat