protecting your community in local government environmental health

 

Introduction

Environmental health in local government is all about improving people’s quality of life and making sure they are able to live, work and play in safe, healthy environments. Local government environmental health officers/practitioners are involved in a wide range of activities covering food safety, public health, occupational health, housing and environmental protection.

Environmental health officers work in unitary, district/borough and metropolitan councils, but not in county councils.

Work Environment

Some the work is office-based, but much of the work involves visiting shops, restaurants, kitchens, factories and offices. Some of the visits may be to dirty and sometimes potentially dangerous, or unpleasant places and it might sometimes be necessary to wear protective clothing hats, masks and overalls.

Local government environmental health officers work a normal 37 hour week, but may also be required to be on call some evenings and weekends in case of emergency.

Daily Activities

Local government environmental health officers may be involved in all aspects of environmental health work, as generalists, or they might specialise in one of the five main areas of work:

• Food safety - this work involves inspecting premises where food is prepared and sold such as restaurants, shops, pubs, factories and take-aways, to ensure that health and safety standards are being met and to advise on food regulations.  Some of the visits are routine, but others are unplanned and usually in response to complaints from the public.

• Public health – environmental health officers work in partnership with medical professionals to protect and promote public health.  They get involved in health awareness campaigns such as the dangers of smoking and obesity.  They are also involved in educating the public about infectious diseases.

• Housing – this work involves monitoring housing standards to ensure that housing is safe and fit to live in.  The work might include checking to see if there are legal fire escapes and smoke alarms, monitoring sanitation arrangements and ensuring repairs are carried out by landlords.

• Health and safety in the workplace – environmental health officers visit a range of businesses and offices to monitor health and safety standards.  They assess the risks and ensure that employees are safe.  Sometimes they might have to investigate accidents in the workplace.

• Environmental protection – this work involves monitoring dangerous levels of air, water, land and noise pollution, identifying problems and taking action to rectify them.  Officers need to use specialist equipment to take samples of water and soil, to monitor pollution levels in the air, or measure noise levels.  They then provide recommendations on how to resolve the problem and in some cases they take enforcement action to deal with the issue.

Local government environmental health officers might also expect to spend some of their time visiting schools and community groups to talk about relevant issues, such as fire or food safety.
They might also expect to spend some time collating and preparing data for court cases and giving evidence.

Skills & Interests

Local government environmental health officers need to:

• have good investigative and decision-making abilities,
• have a methodical, careful approach to gathering facts and assessing evidence,
• be excellent commnicators - both verbally and in writing,
• be firm, but fair,
• be able to deal with unpleasant conditions from time to time,
• have good scientific and technical understanding.

Entry Requirements

Environmental health is a graduate profession, therefore to become fully qualified you must gain a degree accredited by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health.  Entry requirements for most degree courses are minimum five GSCE/Standard grades (A-C/1-3 or above) and at least 2 A-levels.  (You don’t necessarily need science-based A-levels, but at least one would be preferable.)
Science graduates can enter via an accredited postgraduate course and there are foundation courses available for non-science graduates or career changers.
Some local councils may offer sponsorship opportunities for students.

You can study for a CIEH accredited degree at any of the following universities:

           
• University of Derby
• Nottingham Trent University
• Manchester Metropolitan University
• University of the West of England (Bristol)
• University of the West of England (Bristol) postgraduate courses
• University of Birmingham
• Leeds Metropolitan University
• Middlesex University
• King’s College, London
• University of Salford
• University of Northumbria
• University of Wales Institute, Cardiff
• University of Ulster
• University of Strathclyde

A full driving licence is usually required.

Estimated salary range

Local government environmental health officers usually earn £24,700 - £35,400.
Please note that salary information is a guide only and there may be local agreements in place. For further information about salaries for particular positions, please contact your local council directly.

Future prospects & opportunities

A well and clearly defined promotion structure within a local council leads to senior, principal and chief officer posts in environmental health. It may be necessary to move to other councils to gain more experience, breadth of work and promotion.

Download the Local Government East Midlands career pathways leaflet, which will tell you more about career progression in environmental health.

Related Occupations

Follow this link to view a list of all related occuptions in Protecting Your Community.
Further Information & Services

Chartered Institute of Environment Health www.cieh.org.uk

CIEH environmental health careers information www.ehcareers.org

Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland
www.royal-environmental-health.org.uk

Local Government East Midlands Environmental Careers website www.emehcareers.org.uk

You may find further information about this area of work in your local Connexions service/careers office/school careers library - under AC.

What should I do next?

Look for current local government Environmental Health Officer vacancies in the following places:

• LGjobs.com - our official recruitment website for local government.
• Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly jobs bulletins produced by local councils themselves, available from libraries, community centres, town halls/main civic buildings and central council personnel departments.
• Local council websites.
• Local newspapers
• National newspapers - The Guardian is particularly well known for its public sector job advertisements on a Wednesday.

Find out about the council and get some work experience if possible by:

• Making the most of work experience placements arranged through your school, college or university.
• Contacting councils close to your home to find out about the work experience opportunities they offer.
• Talking to someone who does the job you are interested in - ring your local council to see if someone can spare some time.
• Making an appointment to see a careers adviser for more specific information about jobs and training.