Trading Standards Enforcement Officer SO1 - PO3

About Waltham Forest

Bursting with culture, innovation, energy and opportunity, Waltham Forest is a place people want to live, raise a family, start a business and work.

The pandemic has meant that delivering fantastic local services are more important now than ever, over this past year we have risen to new challenges through the adoption of new ways of working and innovation in service delivery, enabling us to continue to make a difference for our residents.

Public service has been at the heart of our response to Covid-19 and our new strategy sets out how we will continue to change our ways of working to become a more modern, efficient and responsive organisation, and we want to build on the success of recent years.

Trading Standards Enforcement Officer

Pay:    £33,324 - £40,869 + £3,000 Market Supplement

We are looking to recruit a Trading Standards Enforcement Officer to join our Trading Standards Team. Our Trading Standards Service aims to build a safe, fair, and legal marketplace for Waltham Forest, helping businesses succeed and safeguarding communities. The team is part of a larger group of Regulatory Services within the Resident Services Directorate. We are looking for motivated and dedicated officers with demonstrable experience of working within a Trading Standards environment with a broad range of knowledge and investigative skills as well as experience leading on specialist topic areas.

You will be joining a busy, friendly, and professional team and you should have the ability to work in a team environment as well as on your own providing a customer focused responsive risk based professional service. You should be highly motivated and will be expected to deliver against a challenging work plan.

The appointed officer will be

• Enforcing trading standards legislation by inspection, investigation, sampling, and other means
• Investigating offences under trading standards legislation and taking appropriate action under the Council’s Enforcement Policy, including conducting interviews in accordance with PACE 1984 and all other relevant legislation
• Collecting evidence and preparing case reports for possible prosecution and attending legal proceedings
• Undertaking sampling of goods and services to determine if breaches of trading standards legislation are occurring, and take appropriate action
• Enforcing relevant Age Restricted Products legislation, including test purchasing using children under 18 as volunteer test purchasers
• Advising businesses and traders of their legal obligations relating to civil and criminal trading standards legislation
• Maintaining proper records for all work undertaken
• Undertaking enforcement activities outside normal flexi hours

Applications are invited from those who hold the Diploma in Trading Standards, DCATS or its equivalent with an interest and working knowledge of intelligence systems used within a Trading Standards Service.

Equal Opportunities

Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population.

We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith, and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace.

The Council is committed to meeting its 4 strategic outcomes contained within the Waltham Forest Council Equality Plan:

• Promoting equality of opportunity
• Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance, and disadvantage
• Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels
• Providing fair, appropriate, accessible, and excellent services to all.

Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.

How to apply

To apply, please complete the application form and submit it within the given deadline

Closing date: Friday, 09 July 2021 

We are keen to hear from all applicants who fit the criteria. Because we are clear that a combination of differences in our teams produces the best team performance, we are particularly keen to make sure that the applicants include people from ethnic minorities, people who are openly living as LGBTQI, or with a disability. Waltham Forest Council recognises that diversity is a strength and what people bring through their personal experiences, background and identity significantly enhances to the Council’s ability to deliver to our staff and residents.

In your application, please make sure you show how you can meet the job-specific accountabilities and demonstrate the experience required.