Staffordshire County Council, Are you passionate about protecting residents and visitors from fraudulent and illegal practices? If so, we have an exciting opportunity to join our high quality, professional Trading Standards team whose focus is on delivering the most effective service for Staffordshire residents and businesses, whilst embracing intelligence‑led activity within a matrix working environment. Our team of dedicated officers work hard to maintain the integrity of the food chain and keep people safe and well.
Our Trading Standards Priorities
- Prevention – working with partners to reduce offending.
- Supporting the local economy – enabling businesses to be compliant.
- Safeguarding – our most vulnerable residents.
- Enforcement – taking robust and proportionate action against offenders.
What We Offer
- A supportive and inclusive working environment.
- Flexible working arrangements, including hybrid working.
- Generous annual leave and pension scheme.
- Ongoing professional development opportunities.
Main Responsibilities
- Maintaining Food Standards: Conducting regular inspections of food businesses, including manufacturers, retailers, and caterers.
- Animal Health and Welfare Oversight: Inspecting farms and markets to uphold animal health and welfare standards, including animal licensing activities.
- Protecting the Public: Safeguarding vulnerable individuals and taking enforcement action when necessary.
- Preventing Harm and Detriment: Disrupting and investigating rogue traders and illegal doorstep activities, building criminal cases, and presenting evidence in court.
- Collaborating for Impact: Working with partners and stakeholders to enhance efficiency, recover costs, and generate income.
- Ensuring Product Safety: Conducting test purchases and sampling food, toys, cosmetics, electrical goods, and animal feed to ensure compliance with legal standards.
- Monitoring Trade Practices: Carrying out inspections both in‑person and online of manufacturers and suppliers.
- Supporting Businesses: Advising companies on how to trade fairly and comply with regulations.
- Fighting Fraud and Scams: Partnering with other agencies to protect consumers and businesses from deceptive practices.
- Safety of Sports Grounds: Supporting safety management teams at sports grounds to ensure compliance, and working in partnership with other agencies in Safety Advisory Groups.
The Ideal Candidate
- Enforcement experience and already holding a trading standards qualification (Diploma in Trading Standards or Consumer Affairs).
- Experience of criminal investigation and completion of criminal investigation reports.
- Experience of project working.
- Ability to manage conflict and difficult situations effectively.
- Excellent interpersonal skills to form effective diverse working relationships with colleagues and partners.
- In‑depth knowledge of Trading Standards matters, criminal, civil and procedural legislation.
- Awareness of National and Local Government policy in regulatory services.
You’ll preferably also
- Hold (or be working towards) a Regulatory Compliance Officer or Trading Standards Practitioner Apprenticeship or similar.
- Demonstrate a recognised certificate of competence in (or have keen interest in):
- Food Standards
- Feed
- Animal Health and Welfare
- Animal Licensing Inspector Level 3 Award
- Sports Ground Safety
You will be expected to travel efficiently across Staffordshire and have a flexible approach to out‑of‑hours and weekend working, including an out‑of‑hours rota.
Staffordshire County Council is an equal opportunities organisation and Disability Confident employer. We encourage applications from all backgrounds and communities.
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