Public Protection Officer / Environmental Health Practitioner (Food Safety)

We are looking for experienced, enthusiastic, conscientious and motivated registered Food Safety Practitioners or Environmental Health Practitioners to work within our Regulatory Services Department. You will work within the Public Protection Team primarily carrying out food hygiene inspections but also assisting with occupational health and safety, and infectious disease control work as required. The service is responsible for enforcing a variety of legislation and regimes so you will need a basic knowledge of relevant Environmental Health legislation; including Food Safety and Sampling, Occupational Health and Safety, Infectious Disease Control, Imported food, the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and Public Health Acts. The role provides an excellent opportunity to work and gain experience across multiple areas of Environmental Health. Applications from registered Food Safety Officers for the Public Protection Officer post will require you to hold the Higher Certificate in Food Control with CIEH and have specialist knowledge of food safety and hygiene legislation. We may consider applications from individuals who have completed the Higher Certificate in Food Control but still need to complete their Portfolio. You will be joining a busy, friendly, supportive and professional team within a forward-thinking and innovative service which is already utilising technology to enhance the service we deliver and providing its officers with efficient and modern working practices. Core duties of the role will be:

• Working under your own initiative to manage a caseload of allocated work to specific timescales and performance targets, including programmed food hygiene inspections, food complaints and related investigations.
• To deliver a high quality service to the public that is consistent, open and balanced and in the first instance incorporates an educative approach to guide businesses to compliance with current legislation and codes of practice.
• To instigate enforcement action, when necessary, according to Codes of Practice and Enforcement Policies, including preparing, serving, and enforcing legal notices, cautions and prosecutions relating to multiple areas of Environmental Health within level of authorisation.
• To liaise closely with the public, external partner agencies and internal departments to increase effectiveness of enforcement work using strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• This post holder is required to have a full clean UK driving licence and own transport and is educated to degree level in environmental health for the Environmental Health Practitioner role or Higher Certificate in Food Control for Public Protection Officers.
  
  Salary starting from from £41,160
Attractive salary rates available to the right candidate.,
• Competitive salary
• Flexible working hours
• Remote/Hybrid working
• Flexible annual leave and working arrangements
• Local Government Pension Scheme membership
• Reduced cost leisure membership
• Employee Wellbeing package
• Cycle to Work Scheme
Successful applicants will be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check. Thanet District Council serves the beautiful coastal towns and villages in East Kent; including Broadstairs, Margate, Ramsgate and Minster, providing a variety of services to over 135,000 residents. Our historic seaside towns of Ramsgate, Margate and Broadstairs and surrounding villages are rich in heritage and opportunity. With 19 miles of stunning coastline, our beautiful Blue Flag beaches, the internationally renowned Turner Contemporary, and the UK's only Royal Harbour are all just a short train ride from central London thanks to the high-speed rail link. Our proximity to the port of Dover and the Eurotunnel at Folkestone mean Europe is literally on our doorstep too. All of this, combined with a flexible approach to how we work makes it an exciting time to join Thanet District Council. We have set our sights high. We want our residents to enjoy the highest quality services. We want to ensure that by listening to local people, working in active partnership and doing things in an innovative way, we can accelerate improvement to meet the challenges ahead.