Environmental Health Officer - Food

Job Description

Job Title: Environmental Health Officer - Food
Salary: £45,624 – £52,038 per annum
Grade: F
Contract Type: Permanent
Working Hours: 37 hours per week

About the Department

The Food Safety Team plays a key role in protecting public health across Thurrock. We work with local businesses, residents and partner agencies to ensure food is safe, legal and produced to the highest standards. Our work includes food hygiene and standards inspections, complaint investigations, sampling programmes, infectious disease investigations and responding to food incidents

Based within Corporate Services, the team also delivers specialist import and export food controls, reflecting Thurrock's strategic location and proximity to major port facilities. This provides a varied and interesting workload across a wide range of food safety and regulatory activities.

We are a supportive and professional team committed to high-quality service delivery, regulatory excellence and improving public health outcomes for our communities.

About the Role

We are seeking a motivated and experienced Environmental Health Officer (Food) to join Corporate Services and play a key role in protecting public health, supporting local businesses, and ensuring compliance with food law across the borough.

This is an exciting opportunity to work within a dynamic regulatory service, undertaking a varied workload that includes food hygiene inspections, food standards enforcement, food sampling, complaint investigation, and health and safety regulation. You will work with a wide range of food businesses, from local independent operators to larger commercial enterprises, providing professional advice and taking proportionate enforcement action where required.

The successful candidate will contribute to the delivery of the Council’s statutory responsibilities under food and health and safety legislation, helping to ensure residents and visitors can have confidence in the safety and standards of local businesses. You will also support service improvement initiatives, participate in partnership working, and contribute to the development of less experienced officers within the team.

What We’re Looking For

We are looking for someone who is:

• a qualified Environmental Health professional with a passion for public health protection and a strong commitment to customer service, regulatory excellence, and effective enforcement.
• The ideal candidate will have experience of delivering food law interventions within a local authority setting and be confident in exercising professional judgement in complex and often challenging situations. You will possess excellent communication and interpersonal skills, enabling you to work effectively with businesses, residents, elected members, partner agencies, and the courts.
• You will be able to manage your own workload, prioritise competing demands, and deliver high-quality outcomes within statutory timescales. A collaborative approach, sound technical knowledge, and the ability to balance education with appropriate enforcement action are essential.

Candidates should also demonstrate:

• Strong knowledge of food safety legislation and regulatory enforcement.
• Experience of undertaking food hygiene inspections and investigations.
• Excellent report writing, record keeping, and case preparation skills.
• The ability to communicate complex technical information clearly and effectively.
• Experience of gathering and evaluating evidence and applying enforcement policies.
• A proactive and flexible approach to service delivery.

Essential qualifications:

• A Degree or Diploma in Environmental Health.
• EHORB Registration (or equivalent recognised professional qualification).
• Current competence to carry out food hygiene inspections in accordance with the Food Standards Agency Food Law Code of Practice.

DBS Check: Basic level is required for this post

Benefits of Working with Us

At Thurrock Council, we value our employees and offer a comprehensive benefits package, including:

• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Flexible and hybrid working opportunities (where applicable)
• Ongoing training and professional development
• Employee assistance programme and wellbeing support
• Staff discounts and local offers
• A supportive and inclusive working environment

Important Dates

Closing Date (Redeployment Only): 16th July 2026

Closing Date (Internal & External): 26th July 2026

Interview Date: 28th -30th July 2026

Additional Information

If you have any questions about the role or interview process, please contact:

Gareth Olive, Regulatory Manager

golive@thurrock.gov.uk | 01375 652110

To view the Job Profile and Person Specification, please follow the link below:

Download Job Profile (PDF Document)

About us

Why Thurrock?

Working at Thurrock Council gives you the opportunity to join an organisation that is changing at pace, one where you can make a real difference to the lives of the people we serve.

Thurrock Council is moving towards a new community leadership approach which involves linking with local partners and communities as we shape our improvement for the years ahead.

This is an exciting time to join us, to shape the future success of our changing organisation and to have a positive influence on our borough.

Our location

Thurrock is located on the north bank of the river Thames. Our urban centres are a vibrant mix of established towns and new young communities, with a diverse and growing population of around 160,000 residents.

We are an emerging cultural and arts centre, home to the production centre for the Royal Opera House and the National Skills Academy for Creative and Cultural Skills. We have excellent retail and leisure opportunities, including Lakeside Shopping Centre, country parks, forests, and marshes.

Thurrock is just half an hour journey away from the centre of London by train and well connected by road.

Staff benefits

We offer lots of staff benefits, including a generous annual leave entitlement and hybrid working. We champion flexible working and job share applications are welcome.

Further information can be found here Employment benefits | Working for the council | Thurrock Council

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Thurrock Council is committed to equal opportunities. As a Disability Confident Employer, disabled people will be offered an interview where they meet all essential criteria on the person specification.

We serve a diverse community where people are different yet equal. Diversity underpins everything we do.

For further information about Thurrock Council please visit our website: Thurrock Council