Local Government South East
Environmental Health Officer/Senior EHO – Private Sector Housing
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Full Time Permanent Reading
Posted 12 hours ago
£33,119 to £48,738 + Market Supplement for CIEH Registered EHPs/EHRB registered practitioners £5,000 £ / Year
Closes: 18 October 2026
Website Reading Borough Council
We are seeking qualified Environmental Health Officers to join our Private Sector Housing Team and contribute in protecting the quality of life of our residents. This is an exciting time to join the team, as we have just introduced an additional licensing and with further selective licensing schemes planned. This recognizes the importance of good housing and the key role the private sector landlords play in this, to help build thriving communities.
We seek the best talent from the widest pool of people as diversity and inclusion is the key to our success. Reading Borough Council is a Disability Confident Employer and is committed to the recruitment and continued employment of people with disabilities.
We support hybrid working, it’s important to us that working arrangements are designed to enable our employees to excel and within this role you’ll have the opportunity to work in a way that suits your lifestyle.
About The Role
The roles focus on licensing of houses in multiple occupation and enforcing legislation on property conditions. You will be inspecting properties identifying defects and potential breaches of legislation, advising landlords on requirements and taking enforcement action where necessary.
Experience in dealing with tall building fire safety and/or licensing of houses in multiple occupation and discretionary licensing schemes is desirable.
You will be based at our offices in the centre of Reading but will spend significant time out of the office on inspections and there is flexibility to work from home, subject to the needs of the service.
Private Sector Housing – As an urban area we are challenged a high proportion of rented properties including licensable house in multiple occupation (hmos), many of which are in poor condition.
The successful candidate will carry out inspections and investigations looking at housing conditions across the borough. Primarily this will be linked to compliance with the hmo licensing schemes, as well as spending a proportion of time dealing with reactive work on housing complaints and providing assistance and advice to tenants and landlords.
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Depending on experience we are also looking for candidates who could contribute to our work relating to tall building fire safety and find new ways to deliver services in the private rented sector as well.
The successful candidate will spend significant time on inspections, advising landlords on legal requirements and on the consultation process and on processing hmo licence applications. You will work with partners both internally and externally to administer the scheme and improve property conditions for our residents.
There will be the requirement for some work outside of normal office hours, and you will need a flexible approach to your work. There is also a possibility to assist on an out of hours noise rota (there is additional payment for working on the out of hours noise rota).
About You
Please note the qualifications requirements for this post, which for an environmental health officer is subject to professional registration as an environmental health practitioner via EHRB/Register of Environmental Health Practitioners Registration. New professionals completing their studies and working towards registration may be eligible to apply to the Graduate EHO payscale.
You Must Have
- Knowledge of the Private Rented Sector and/or a regulatory environment.
- Possession of a current driving licence
- Ability to communicate effectively with colleagues, members of the public and other agencies, both verbally and in writing.
You’ll be part of a team that relies on each individual to play their part to the best of their ability. As well as the colleagues that you work closely with every day, you’ll also be part of Team Reading, playing your personal part in making Reading a successful and vibrant place.
Benefits
Our vision is to ensure that Reading realises its potential as a great place to live, work and play, and that everyone shares the benefits of this success. Our values and behaviours guide how we will achieve this:
- Work Together as one team – work collaboratively, with each other and with our partners, and demonstrate the Team Reading values in everything we do
- Drive Efficiency – show initiative, be adaptable to change and put forward ideas to help improve delivery and efficiency. Take responsibility for our own learning and development and for reaching our potential
- Be Ambitious – be demanding of our own performance – striving to be even better – and be prepared to engage with and challenge leaders in a constructive and positive way
- Make a Difference to Reading – maintain the highest levels of customer service and be flexible and willing to provide the services needed at the time they are needed.
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Our Offer
We offer a supportive environment to grow and develop your career with the opportunity to put your ideas across. Innovation and ambition is strongly encouraged, and you’ll get a great feel for that working in our friendly and collaborative environment.
A Competitive Salary Alongside a Range Of Benefits Including
- Generous holiday entitlement – 25 days holiday each year plus bank holidays – rising to 33 days after 10 years’ service, with the option to buy additional leave
- A wide range of flexible working opportunities
- Modern working environment at the Civic Offices in the heart of Reading
- Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
- Life Assurance – three times your annual salary (for members of the LGPS)
- On-site day nursery (Kennet Day nursery) rated outstanding by Ofsted, and a salary sacrifice scheme to help lower the cost of your nursery fees
- Season Ticket Loan – a loan to help with the cost of your rail or bus journey, to and from work
- Lease car salary sacrifice scheme allowing you to lease a brand new, greener car for three years. The monthly fee includes insurance, servicing and road tax
To arrange a confidential discussion on this position please contact Stuart Taylor, Principal Environmental Health Officer – stuart.taylor@reading.gov.uk
Closing Date: Sunday 18th October 2026
Interview Date: To be confirmed
Interview Setup: In person at the Civic Centre, Bridge Street, Reading, RG1 2LU
To apply for this job please visit reabcli.webitrent.com.
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