Trading Standards Officer

As a Trading Standards Officer, you will work within a multi-disciplinary team, addressing specialist areas such as fair trading, animal health, product safety or metrology. You will ensure a fair and legal trading environment is maintained by advising trade, industry and consumers on trading standards law and enforcing legislation through legal sanctions.

Whilst there is a primary focus on fair trading, you will be responsible for delivering the full range of trading standards functions, including enforcement action, complex investigations and effective partnership working. Initiating investigations into suspected offences, you will recommend appropriate courses of action to your team leader and prepare draft prosecution reports where required. It will be your responsibility to gather and secure evidence, using statutory powers of seizure where necessary and conducting formal interviews with suspected offenders. You will compile accurate and timely reports in line with the rules of evidence. By providing advice and guidance to consumers and businesses on relevant legislation and market activities, you will help ensure compliance with trading standards laws. You may also be required to present evidence in court on the result of investigations, ensuring that legislation has been effectively enforced by the service.

You must hold a full relevant Trading Standards enforcement qualification, such as DCATS, Level 6 Trading Standards Practitioner Apprenticeship, or an equivalent, and have demonstrable experience working within an enforcement or legal environment. It is essential that you have a sound knowledge of trading standards legislation and the ability to make professional judgment in assessing compliance, applying your initiative to deliver effective outcomes with operational constraints. You will be a self‑motivated, committed and determined professional, who can prioritise, plan, monitor and evaluate your workload and caseload effectively. It is key that you can work accurately under pressure, meet deadlines and demonstrate strong verbal and written communication skills.

You will be required to complete a non‑police personnel vetting Level 2 (abbreviated). You will be expected to travel throughout the authority and surrounding area so must have a full valid driving licence with regular access to a vehicle or have alternative appropriate means of travel.

We know our team work best when they have balance in their lives and we offer genuine flexibility to help them achieve that work/life balance. We value our staff as individuals, investing in their careers and we are recognised for the quality, breadth and depth of our training and development offer, which helps make the greatest long‑term difference in work. As part of our benefits package you will receive generous annual leave (pro rata), employee wellbeing support and you will have access to a range of staff discounts, including eye tests, travel, shopping and leisure activities. We recognise that our diverse team of skilled and dedicated people make us a great place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and developed on the basis of their merits and abilities. Our teams at South Gloucestershire Council are making a real difference to the lives of people who live, work and learn here. We’re providing essential services across our internal network to ensure we can fully support our community. We’re positive and forward thinking, always looking for new and innovative ways of working and we’re ambitious about the future. We've achieved a great deal, but we need talented and dedicated people to ensure we continue to make a difference. We’re making a difference, be part of it!