What Does NEBOSH General Cover? GNC1 and GNC2 Explained

When You Book Multiple Courses.

The NEBOSH National General Certificate covers how to manage health and safety in any workplace and how to identify and control the most common workplace hazards. The syllabus has 11 elements, split across two units: GNC1, an open book exam on the management of health and safety, and GNC2, a practical risk assessment of your own workplace. This guide walks through every element and explains how each unit is assessed, so you know exactly what you will learn on a NEBOSH General Certificate course.

NG1 and NG2 are now GNC1 and GNC2

If you have seen the units called NG1 and NG2, that is the 2018 specification. NEBOSH has replaced it with a 2025 specification, which uses the unit codes GNC1 and GNC2. The final NG1 exam was sat on 5 August 2026 and the final NG2 deadline was 6 August 2026, so anyone starting the qualification now studies the 2025 syllabus.

The overall shape is familiar. Unit 1 is still called Management of health and safety, Unit 2 is still called Risk assessment, and the syllabus still has the same 11 element headings. Under the 2025 specification, both units are completed and submitted through NEBOSH’s digital assessment platform.

The NEBOSH General Certificate at a glance

Feature	Detail
Full title	NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety
Level	SCQF Level 6, comparable to RQF Level 3 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Units	GNC1: Management of health and safety. GNC2: Risk assessment
Syllabus	11 elements: four on managing health and safety, seven on workplace hazards
Study time	A minimum of 66 taught hours plus around 40 hours of private study
Entry requirements	None, although NEBOSH recommends English at IELTS 6.0 or higher
Grading	Based on GNC1: Pass 45 to 64, Credit 65 to 74, Distinction 75 or more. GNC2 is Pass or Refer
Membership	Entitles you to AIOSH and AIIRSM, and meets the academic requirement for Tech IOSH with experience

For more on the level of the qualification and who it suits, see what the NEBOSH General Certificate is and how it compares.

GNC1: managing health and safety (Elements 1 to 4)

The first four elements are about the management side of health and safety: why it matters, who is responsible, and how a good organisation plans, controls and checks its safety performance. They are assessed mainly in the GNC1 open book exam, and parts of them feed into the GNC2 risk assessment too.

Element 1: Why we should manage workplace health and safety

The moral, financial and legal reasons for managing health and safety, how it is regulated and enforced in the UK, and the main duties of employers and workers under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. It also covers how contractors should be selected, monitored and managed, and the roles and responsibilities under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.

Element 2: How health and safety management systems work

The key parts of a health and safety management system, based on ISO 45001 and HSE guidance HSG65, the benefits and limitations of different systems, and what an effective health and safety policy should contain.

Element 3: Managing risk, understanding people and processes

This is the largest management element. It covers health and safety culture and how to improve it, how human factors affect behaviour, the principles of risk assessment, managing change, safe systems of work, permit to work systems, emergency procedures and how to decide what first aid provision a workplace needs.

Element 4: Health and safety monitoring and measuring

Why and how incidents should be investigated, recorded and reported, active and reactive monitoring, auditing, and how regular reviews of health and safety performance are carried out.

GNC2: workplace hazards (Elements 5 to 11)

The remaining seven elements cover the hazards you are most likely to meet at work, what harm they cause and how to control them. They are assessed through the GNC2 practical risk assessment, where you apply them to a real workplace.

Element	Topics covered
5. Physical and psychological health	Noise, vibration, radiation, mental ill health, violence at work, substance abuse at work
6. Musculoskeletal health	Work related upper limb disorders, manual handling, load handling equipment
7. Chemical and biological agents	Hazardous substances, assessing health risks, occupational exposure limits, control measures, specific agents such as asbestos, Legionella, silica and wood dust
8. General workplace issues	Welfare and work environment, working at height, confined spaces, lone working, slips and trips, movement of people and vehicles, work related driving
9. Work equipment	General requirements, hand held tools, machinery hazards and machinery controls
10. Fire	Fire principles, preventing fire and fire spread, fire alarms and fire fighting, evacuation
11. Electricity	Electrical hazards and risks, and control measures

How each unit is assessed

GNC1: the open book exam

GNC1 is a digital, scenario based open book exam. You get 24 hours to access, complete and submit the paper, starting at 11am UK time on the exam date, and the assessment includes a closing interview where you are asked questions about your submission. The provisional pass mark is 45 per cent, and your overall qualification grade comes from this unit alone. You can resit GNC1 to improve your grade.

For question styles and preparation tips, read our guide to the NEBOSH General open book exam.

GNC2: the practical risk assessment

GNC2 is a risk assessment of your own workplace. If you do not have access to one, your Learning Partner helps you arrange suitable premises. You must have studied the whole syllabus before you start. The submission has four sections:

Background: a description of the organisation, the area or process you are assessing, and how you carried out the assessment.
Risk assessment: hazards drawn from at least five different hazard categories, who might be harmed and how, existing controls, further actions, who is responsible and by when.
Prioritising one hazard: the legal, moral and general reasons it should be dealt with first, and how you would check the actions worked.
Communicate, check, review: how the findings will be shared, how actions will be followed up, and a realistic review date.

GNC2 is marked out of 100 with a pass mark of 60, and the result is Pass or Refer. Both units must be passed within five years, and NEBOSH issues the results for both units on the same day.

Our NEBOSH practical assessment guide explains how to approach the risk assessment and avoid the common mistakes.

Who the NEBOSH General syllabus suits

NEBOSH designed the qualification for managers, supervisors and workers in any type of organisation who need a broad understanding of health and safety to manage day to day risks. Many people take it as the first step into a health and safety career, and it is a sound base for further study.

Because the hazard elements are deliberately general, the syllabus does not go deep into site specific topics such as excavations, demolition or mobile plant. If most of your work is on construction sites, read NEBOSH General vs Construction: what is the difference and which should you take before you choose.

Studying the syllabus with Target Zero

Every NEBOSH learner must register with an accredited Learning Partner, as NEBOSH does not allow self study for its qualifications. Target Zero is an accredited NEBOSH Learning Partner, so our trainers take you through all 11 elements and prepare you for both the GNC1 open book exam and the GNC2 practical risk assessment.

Target Zero has more than 10,000 verified reviews on Reviews.io and a 4.9 rating on Trustpilot. You can see course dates and book on our NEBOSH General Certificate course page.

FAQs

What are the units of the NEBOSH General Certificate?

There are two units. GNC1, Management of health and safety, is a scenario based open book exam. GNC2, Risk assessment, is a practical risk assessment of a workplace. Under the older 2018 specification these units were called NG1 and NG2.

What is the pass mark for GNC1 and GNC2?

The provisional pass mark for GNC1 is 45 per cent, with Credit from 65 and Distinction from 75. GNC2 is marked out of 100 and you need 60 to pass. You must pass both units to receive the qualification.

How many hazard categories do you need for the NEBOSH practical?

Your GNC2 risk assessment must include hazards from at least five different hazard categories. NEBOSH lists 21 categories, drawn from Elements 5 to 11, ranging from noise and manual handling to working at height, machinery, fire and electricity.

Does the NEBOSH General Certificate cover construction?

It covers some construction relevant topics, including managing contractors, the roles under CDM 2015 and working at height. It does not cover construction hazards in depth. That is the job of the NEBOSH Construction certificate, compared here.

How long does it take to study the NEBOSH General syllabus?

NEBOSH sets a minimum of 66 taught hours plus around 40 hours of private study and background reading. NEBOSH says fast track learners can complete the qualification in 10 working days.

Can you study NEBOSH General without any experience?

Yes. There are no entry requirements. NEBOSH recommends a standard of English equivalent to IELTS 6.0 or higher so you can understand the syllabus and write clear answers.

Ready to work through the full syllabus with an accredited NEBOSH Learning Partner? Take a look at our NEBOSH General Certificate course to find a date that suits you.