Environmental Protection Officer (Kingston Upon Thames)

We are currently recruiting for an Environmental Protection Officer in Kingston Upon Thames.

Pay rate: PAYE 24.22 per hour/UMB 30.34 per hour

Hours:  9:00am-17:00pm- 36 hours per week

Contract duration: Temporary ongoing

Department: Facilities and Environmental Services

Purpose:

To provide a range of professional and/or technical services within a single shared service across two of our client’s areas carrying out a portfolio of regulatory, compliance, enforcement and related activities.

Duties: 

• To arrange and organise a personal case/workload, within boundaries agreed with the relevant Service Manager, but also taking the initiative in responding and adjusting to the changing demands of the team as required.
• Undertake unaccompanied visits and inspections (unless concerns exist about personal safety or specialist advice required in support) to residential and business premises in response to both reactive complaints and proactive risk-based inspection programmes.
• To review information and evidence gathered during a regulatory and compliance visit or inspection and formulate an appropriate response e.g. no action, informal advice or formal action (autonomy to proceed dependent upon skills and experience).
• Consistent with the above, to initiate and take responsibility for sending letters, emails and formal notices to individual members of the public and businesses/organisations on relevant regulatory and enforcement matters, seeking specific approval from the Lead Office or Service Manager in more complex cases or where required by scheme of delegated authority and commensurate with individual knowledge and experience.
• Where required, to take responsibility for the operation and maintenance (e.g. calibration and testing) of high asset value specialised technical equipment that supports investigations and measurements within the community (e.g. noise monitoring and air quality monitoring equipment).
• To critically analyse qualitative and quantitative evidence and data provided or collected to establish whether an intervention is required to protect health, safety, welfare or the environment e.g. to establish whether a statutory nuisance exists.
• Provide accurate and up-to-date information for the Lead Officer and Service Manager as required.
• Maintain effective and direct communication with statutory agencies and other relevant individuals, organisations and bodies as appropriate to the role.
• To actively participate at team meetings and provide cover and support across other service teams, as and when required as part of a generic approach to the deployment and management of resources. This will require a broad knowledge and understanding of key environmental health and / or trading standards issues outside of the individual’s immediate area of professional and/or technical training and experience.
• To initiate and support related enforcement action and judicial proceedings within the terms of delegated responsibilities coming under the remit of the role. This may include preparing a case file of evidence for possible prosecution and making recommendations for action to be approved by the Service Manager.
• Act as an ‘expert witness’ in appearing and presenting evidence in legal (court) proceedings where required in the role as investigating officer and be prepared to be cross-examined and challenged in a court environment.

Experience: 

We are seeking a competent, professional with experience in Environmental Health or Housing Standards to join our busy residential team. We work as a shared service across our client’s areas and deal with all aspects of residential environmental health. You will need experience in dealing with housing standards (HHSRS qualification preferable), public health problems, noise or environmental nuisance, HMO licensing (including an additional licensing scheme).

Apply online or contact Terri O’Keefe on 01925 377 878. You can also email terri@peelsolutions.co.uk for more information on this role.