Different faculties, within a single university, may have different requirements. If a faculty does not recognise General Studies for UCAS points it will be clearly shown in the entry requirements on the UCAS website.
Go here:
http://search.ucas.co.uk/cgi-bin/hsrun/search/ search/search.hjx;start=search.HsSearch.run?y= 2008
Enter your subject and set the institution to either B80 (UWE) or N77 (Northumbria). Click 'Search', then click the course name, followed by 'Entry requirements' (or 'Information on Entry'). Then look under both 'Course Specific Requirements' and 'Other Tariff Qualifications'. If there's a problem with General Studies being recognised, you should find it mentioned there.
Chris