Principal Environmental Health Officer

Directorate: Growth Contract Type: Permanent Hours: 36 Salary: Grade J £48,003 - £53,172 Location: Hybrid/Colindale Closing Date: 11th October 2026 Important Information for Current Barnet Council Employees Where possible, employees who have access to Oracle are encouraged to apply via the Opportunity Marketplace (Internal Career Site). This helps to ensure applications are correctly identified as internal and avoids potential delays during the recruitment process. About Barnet Council Barnet is a borough with much to be proud of. Our excellent schools, vibrant town centres, vast green spaces and diverse communities all help make it a great place to live and work. As a council we want to build on these strengths as we move into the future. We are growing and developing as an organisation to meet the challenges facing our borough and we are committed to working with partner organisations and residents to make Barnet even better. As an organisation, our staff are committed to Our Values: Learning to Improve, Caring, Inclusive, Collaborative – which drive everything we do. About Housing Regulatory Services In Housing Regulatory Services we are committed to helping all residents to live safely in their homes. Staff are empowered to make enforcement decisions and use the full breadth of the legal options available to them to ensure that tenants are safe, landlords informed and actions taken are legally compliant and expedient. The service covers the full range of housing enforcement related service areas including HMO licensing, Fire Safety in tower blocks and empty properties. We work closely with other departments and agencies to ensure that the most appropriate action is taken and the full breadth of the law considered. About the role This is an exciting opportunity to join Housing Regulatory Services at Barnet Council providing technical, professional enforcement services with the overall aim of protecting and improving the health, safety and welfare of every resident, worker and visitor within the Borough. The post will be working in the HMO Licensing Team investigating complaints, following up on compliance and taking enforcement action as appropriate. Whilst working in a team, you will be expected to work independently in a hybrid manner ensuring that the most appropriate enforcement actions and decisions are made at all times. You will be required to be flexible, dealing with or supporting other officers on the most complex enforcement cases. Whilst this isn't a managers role, as a principal officer you will also take on specific additional relevant specialisms and lead on these for the department including supporting our inhouse training scheme. Please click here to download the Job description for this role. (Right-click and select “Open in new tab” so you can keep the job description open while completing your application) About you We are looking for a candidate who has considerable experience working as a Housing Enforcement Officer. You will need to have demonstrable experience of completing HHSRS assessments, and taking enforcement action under the Housing Act 2004 and associated legislation. You will be able to demonstrate excellent interpersonal and negotiation skills both verbally and in writing, and feel comfortable in working with a wide range of people and organisations to deal with difficult or complex issues. As this is a key housing enforcement role you will need to be experienced in taking complex housing enforcement action including issuing penalty notices and taking prosecutions. What we offer 31 days annual leave, plus public and bank holidays Access to the Local Government Pension Scheme , which provides a valuable guaranteed income in your retirement together with security for your dependents A comprehensive Flexible Working Policy which supports work-life balance by empowering staff and management to make decisions around when, where, and how work is done A vast range of lifestyle discounts from major