Public Protection Lead — Environmental Health (Hybrid) in Margate

Thanet District Council is looking for an experienced, enthusiastic, conscientious and motivated Environmental Health Practitioner to lead the Public Protection team within our Regulatory Services Department. You will work in a multi-disciplinary role within the Public Protection Team covering food safety, occupational health and safety and infectious disease control.

Thanet District Council serves the beautiful coastal towns and villages in East Kent; including Broadstairs, Margate, Ramsgate and Minster, providing a variety of services to over 145,700 residents. Our historic seaside towns of Ramsgate, Margate and Broadstairs and surrounding villages are rich in heritage and opportunity. With 19 miles of stunning coastline, our beautiful Blue Flag beaches, the internationally renowned Turner Contemporary, and the UK’s only Royal Harbour are all just a short train ride from central London thanks to the high-speed rail link. Our proximity to the port of Dover and the Eurotunnel at Folkestone mean Europe is literally on our doorstep.

All of this, combined with a flexible approach to how we work makes it an exciting time to join Thanet District Council. We have set our sights high and are committed to providing the highest quality services to our stakeholders. We want to ensure that by listening to local people, working in active partnership and doing things in an innovative way, we can accelerate improvement to meet the challenges ahead.

The service is responsible for enforcing a variety of legislation and regimes so you will need to hold relevant qualifications and specialist knowledge of all relevant Environmental Health legislation; including Food Safety, Occupational Health and Safety, Infectious Disease Control, Imported food, the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and Public Health Acts.

You will be managing a busy, friendly, supportive and professional team within a forward thinking and innovative service, which is already utilising technology to enhance the service we deliver and providing its officers with efficient and modern working practices supporting a great work-life balance.

Core duties of the role will be:

• To deliver a high quality service to the public that is consistent, open and balanced and in the first instance incorporates an educative approach to guide businesses to compliance with current legislation.
• To provide day to day management of the Public Protection Team including staffing and recruitment issues, proactive & reactive operations, rotas, support and supervision, work allocation and supervision of case work across a range of enforcement areas.
• To act as Lead Food Officer ensuring compliance with food safety legislation by leading inspection teams, enforcing standards, investigating outbreaks, and managing high-risk food premises.
• To complete service planning and write, update and maintain policies and procedures in line with Codes of Practice and communicate these effectively to the team, other departments and Council members.
• To prepare for and take part in internal and external audits of the service.
• To deputise for the Regulatory Services Manager in their absence including attendance at meetings as may be required from time to time to meet the needs of the service.
• To instigate enforcement action, when necessary, according to Codes of Practice and Enforcement Policies, including preparing, serving, and enforcing legal notices, cautions and prosecutions relating to Environmental Health.
• To acquire & maintain specialist expertise in the fields of public protection including, but not exclusively, food safety, health & safety, public health & infectious disease, sampling, fishing and shellfish classification.

Our staff benefits package include:

• Competitive salary.
• Flexible working hours.
• Remote/Hybrid working.
• Flexible annual leave and working arrangements.
• Local Government Pension Scheme membership.
• Reduced cost leisure membership, including Theatre tickets and sporting activities.
• An extensive Employee Wellbeing package.

Successful applicants will be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check as part of their pre-employment checks.

Closing Date for Applications: 8th June 2026

Interviews to take place: w/c 14th June 2026