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About the Role:

Would you like to play a key role in helping to maintain and build on a positive health and safety culture across a forward-thinking local authority?

This is an exciting opportunity to join a well-established and supportive team as our Corporate Health and Safety Officer on a fixed term maternity cover contract.

The successful candidate will play a key role in maintaining momentum, embedding good practice, and helping to further strengthen the positive health and safety culture that is already in place.

Working across the council, you will provide practical advice, guidance and support to managers and colleagues, helping them to manage risks effectively and meet their health and safety responsibilities with confidence. You will work closely with services across the organisation, ensuring health and safety remains an integral part of everything we do.

No two days are the same. From supporting managers with risk assessments and investigations to delivering training and providing professional advice, this is a varied and rewarding role where you can make a real difference to the safety and wellbeing of our staff, residents and visitors.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing practical health and safety advice, support and training.
• Supporting the management of risk assessments, accident reporting, and audits.
• Investigating incidents and helping services identify and implement improvements.
• Maintaining and reviewing health and safety policies, procedures and guidance.
• Monitoring changes in legislation and best practice to ensure continued compliance.
• Promoting a positive and proactive health and safety culture across the council.

This is a full time role working 37 hours per week on a fixed term basis for 9 months to provide maternity cover. This role offers the benefit of hybrid working, combining office-based working with home working, according to business needs.

About You:

You will be an experienced health and safety professional with a recognised health and safety qualification at diploma, degree or equivalent level.

You'll have a strong understanding of workplace health and safety, together with experience of carrying out risk assessments, investigating incidents and preparing clear, practical reports. Just as importantly, you'll be confident working with colleagues at all levels, providing advice, support and challenge where needed.

We're looking for someone who can quickly build positive relationships across the organisation and help maintain the strong health and safety culture already in place. You'll be able to communicate complex issues in a straightforward way and have experience of delivering engaging health and safety training and guidance.

You will be organised, proactive and practical in your approach, with the ability to manage competing priorities and work independently when required. A commitment to continuous improvement and keeping up to date with health and safety legislation and best practice is essential.

You will hold a full UK driving licence and be willing to work outside normal office hours on occasion to support emergency response arrangements when required.

About Us:

Maidstone Borough Council is a confident organisation with ambition and aspirations to deliver high quality services to our residents and local businesses. We strive to make the borough an attractive place for all and secure a successful economy. We continue to build on our strengths - assets, knowledge and expertise and our track record for innovation and improvement to create a financially sustainable future so that we can continue with our undiminished plans.

We will only achieve the results we are aiming for through the talents and hard work of all our people. You are encouraged to become part of our vision and in return you can expect support, training, and fair reward from us. We will give you the opportunity to develop the skills to do your job well and create a positive working environment where your ideas about improving how we do things are valued and we manage the changes needed for new ways of working well.

At Maidstone Borough Council, we recognise the importance of achieving a healthy work-life balance and offer flexible working and flexi-time arrangements to support this. While there are opportunities for remote working, attendance in the office and visits to council sites will be determined by the needs of the business and the requirements of the role.

Our Offer:

A range of benefits including:

• Highly flexible hybrid working opportunities
• Generous holiday entitlement which increases after 5 years LG service plus bank holidays with the option to buy additional leave.
• Additional 3 days leave given to enable a close down of the offices between Christmas and New year.
• Free parking
• Invitations to staff events to celebrate success and support wellbeing that include holistic therapies and outdoor activities
• Employee Assistance Programme which provides confidential & independent information and access to counsellors
• Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) with valuable life cover and financial protection for your family.
• Life Assurance – three times your annual salary (for members of the LGPS)
• Season Ticket Loan - to help with the cost of your rail/ bus journey, to & from work
• Lease car salary sacrifice scheme allowing you to lease a brand-new car. The monthly fee includes insurance, servicing and road tax.
• Annual flu vaccine
• Cycle to work scheme
• Staff benefits discounts on leisure, eating out, holidays and shopping
• Excellent learning and career opportunities for committed individuals
• A professional fee payment, if required for the role

Selection Process:

Following the submission of your application form, it will be reviewed by the recruiting manager. Those that are successful in securing an interview can expect job specific interview assessment, followed by an interview.

This role is customer-facing and the ability to converse at ease with customers and provide advice in accurate spoken English is an essential element of the role.

Maidstone Borough Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all employee and volunteers to share this commitment.

For further information or to discuss this opportunity in more detail, please contact Uche Olufemi, Enterprise Risk & Resilience Manager on 01622 602562.

Interview Date: w/c 17 August 2026