Environmental Health Officer / Private Sector Housing Officer

Environmental Health Officer / Private Sector Housing Officer  

Job reference COLREQ00880  

Application closing date 26/09/2022  

Salary £33,785 to £39,459  

Contract type: 

Post 1: Environmental Health  Officer/Private Sector Housing Officer: Permanent

Post 2: Environmental Health Officer/Private Sector Housing Officer (Cold Homes/Fuel Poverty): Fixed Term until 31 March 2024 with the possibility to extend

Working hours: 37 hours per week

Colchester Borough Council is committed to delivering high-quality and accessible services to residents, visitors and businesses. We are a local government authority providing a diverse range of public and commercial services across Colchester, the second largest district in Essex. We have recently been awarded City status as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

Duties of the role

Keeping Colchester’s residents safe, tackling poor housing conditions as a wider determinant of health, reducing health inequalities and addressing the cost of living crisis are all key strategic priorities for Colchester Borough Council and its partners.

As a result, we have received funding to expand our Private Sector Housing Team with two additional posts.

We have created a new and exciting, specialist fixed term post to tackle cold homes and address fuel poverty through enforcement action.

We also have one permanent post available within the team to work in one of the specialist areas of enforcement work dealing with poor quality housing.

Post 1

A role specifically to address cold homes and fuel poverty. To undertake proactive research to identify privately rented, socially rented or owner-occupied homes which may fail to meet the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards for letting, have an actionable Excess Cold hazard or where the household may be living in fuel poverty. This will be through a combination of reacting to referrals from residents and partner organisations and by proactive assessment of data already available. To take appropriate enforcement action against landlords and to provide support for owner occupiers and tenants in accessing sources of grant funding for energy efficiency measures and to sign post to other sources of support, for example income maximisation and fuel tariff switching.

Post 2

A full-time permanent post in the Private Sector Housing Team. The Private Sector Housing Team is currently divided into three specialist sub teams to deliver the various PSH functions and this role could sit within any of these specialist sub teams depending on the successful candidate – HMO Licensing team, HMO Proactive enforcement team and General Reactive team.

This is an exciting time for us. We recognise that housing conditions need to be addressed as a determinant of health if we are to reduce the inequalities that exist across the Borough. The Private Sector Housing team is being expanded to address these issues.

We want to hear from motivated, driven, flexible professionals who have the skills and experience to work holistically and collaboratively with a range of partners to make a difference for people living in Colchester.

You can expect a busy and challenging workload and will need to able to work effectively from home.

Qualifications and skills required

For these posts we are looking to appoint fully qualified and experienced Environmental Health Officers/Private Sector Housing Officers. However, the roles may suit those who have competed their degree but are working to complete their final qualifications.

Ideally, you should have a degree in Environmental Health and have completed the HHSRS practitioner and enforcement qualifications. However, candidates with substantial, relevant experience with a Local Authority in a similar role may be considered.

Ideally, you will be competent and experienced in HHSRS assessment, taking the full range of enforcement action using the Housing Act 2004 and action under other Environmental Health legislation.

Ideally you will be competent and experienced in issuing Civil Penalty Notices, taking prosecutions and undertaking works in default.

Ideally you will be a member of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health.

Ideally you should be competent and experienced in processing HMO Licence applications and enforcing standards in HMOs.

What we offer

You will be entitled to join the Local Government Pension Scheme and will receive a generous annual leave entitlement, including two extra company holidays during the Christmas period.

We are currently working most of the time from home and this has worked well for us. The Council Offices are currently being fully refurbished. When the offices re-open, we expect to have a blended approach to working, with some office based and some home working in the future.

Other benefits include:

• Flexible working
• Gym, travel and online retail discounts
• Training and development opportunities
• 50% professional subscriptions paid.

To arrange an informal and confidential discussion please email Anna Watson, Private Sector Housing Manager anna.watson@colchester.gov.uk

Starting salary is dependent on qualifications and/or experience.

If you have a preference on which post you would like to apply for please detail this in your application, otherwise you will be considered for both posts.

For more information regarding Post 1 please click here and for Post 2 please click here

Colchester Borough Council has a wide range of services and facilities that can involve dealing with children or vulnerable adults. We treat our obligations for the safety of children and vulnerable adults seriously and expect our staff to be committed to the principles of our published policies and to adhere to the procedures contained within them.