Food and Safety Officer

Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils, Ipswich IP1 2BX

Food and Safety Officer

£40,478 - £46,549 per annum (pro rata), plus car user allowance

Part Time, 32 hours per week

Permanent

Closing date: 5pm, 21 November 2023

Reference: 12711

Job share opportunities will be considered.

What we are looking for

We are looking for an experienced Environmental Health Professional to join our Food, Safety and Licensing team, someone who shares our values, commitment and motivation to make a difference for our districts.

About You

You will hold a degree or a diploma in Environmental Health or a related subject or have significant experience in environmental health food and safety regulations and be able to meet the competencies for authorised Food Officers in accordance with the Food Law Code of Practice.

Ideally a membership of the CIEH, if not Voting membership, then you must demonstrate an equivalent level of work-based learning and professional competence in food safety and health and safety regulation and be able to demonstrate competency.

Your role will also include:

• a significant amount of animal licensing work, so you should hold or be prepared to obtain an Ofqual Level 3 qualification in inspecting and licensing animal activities businesses. 
• some caravan licensing inspections so knowledge in this area would be preferable.

You should be able to demonstrate a good working knowledge of specialist area related issues and have a commitment to customer care and the provision of high-quality services, with confident and effective communication skills.

You will:

• have experience in undertaking food and safety inspections and identifying areas for improvement
• be required to hold a full driving licence and have access to a car for your day-to-day work
• need to be prepared to work across the Babergh and Mid Suffolk Districts with much of your workload being in the north of the county.

About the Role

In this role, you will inspect, regulate and as appropriate enforce all requirements as required to fulfil the Council’s statutory duties in food safety, occupational health and safety, infectious disease control and other related areas of work, and provide professional and technical advice and support for the two district councils in respect of those areas of work.

Take a lead or shared lead role for one of the services, this includes food safety, occupational health and safety, health promotion/improvement, animal welfare licensing, private water supplies and infectious disease control.

Work collaboratively with internal and external partners to improve services and to strengthen relationships with the business community, adding value to the contact had with businesses as a result of regulatory responsibilities.

To take the lead in investigating food poisoning and relevant infectious disease outbreaks when allocated.When necessary, assist in inspection and investigation and enforcement of all areas associated with the Council’s Environmental Health functions, including Health and Safety inspection and enforcement, and any other duties commensurate with the post holder’s professional qualifications and experience.

Lead promotional and campaign work relevant to the service areas and work with all relevant bodies to support the health and wellbeing of the communities of Babergh and Mid Suffolk

About Us

Working together across our Councils and with our partners in the public, private and voluntary sectors, we provide excellent services to our 190,000 residents across Babergh and Mid Suffolk.

We are proud of the role we play in creating the environment, economy, and communities for our districts. We believe that the heart of Suffolk is an incredibly special place to live and work. With picturesque market towns, 60 conservation areas and with two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) within our districts, it is little wonder that we are consistently within the top 50 places to live in the UK (United Kingdom).

Benefits of working for us

• Great opportunities for learning and development.
• Generous leave entitlement (equivalent to 26 days a year, increasing to 31 days after 5 years’ service, plus bank holidays).
• Competitive Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Wellbeing Support Program
• Employee Assist Program
• Health Care Options.

For more information, visit our Employee Benefits page (suffolkjobsdirect.org) and view 'The best things about working for Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils (youtube)' to find out what our employees say about working for us.

Our ways of working

Work is what we do, not where we go! We are committed to working in a more Hybrid way, with a mix of office, home, and remote based working (Business needs permitting).  This has worked well for us and is something we will be continuing with.

We are committed to supporting equality and diversity, Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils provide opportunity and ambition for all, supporting and enabling our people to deliver the best possible service for our residents.

For more information

If you wish to discuss the Hybrid working approach for this role, or for an informal discussion, please contact Jo Wyatt, Assistant Manager (Food, Safety and Licensing), by calling 07889 647316 or emailing jo.wyatt@baberghmidsuffolk.gov.uk 

How to apply

To apply and for further details, please visit:

https://www.suffolkjobsdirect.org/#en/sites/CX_1004/requisitions/preview/12711

Closing date: 5pm, 21 November 2023.

Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils are an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity.

As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies.