Fixed term secondment until 31 March 2021
About us
Fire risks don’t go away because of Covid-19, and the Government is keen to press on with remediating unsafe ACM buildings. The LGA, (wholly funded by MHCLG), built a team to tackle dangerous cladding on private sector residential tower blocks. The Joint Inspection Team, (JIT), goes across England assisting boroughs to enforce against uncooperative landlords. The JIT team has a fire engineer and building control staff, working alongside the EH team to help with making HHSRS assessments. The team works with the ‘host’ borough to support them take appropriate enforcement action. We need a new experienced EHO team leader to work within the team, to supervise the 3 EHOs, and support the JIT Team Leader.
The role
The team is based in London, (once social distancing is over), but much of the work will be on site: wherever the high-risk blocks are. We need the best staff for this crucial work, and we welcome staff from across the country, on the basis that there will be some team meetings and training required in London. There’ll be blocks to be visited in London too. All staff will have to be ready to stay, (with colleagues), in a hotel in the city where the given block(s) is. Inspections and associated over-night stays will be fully risk-assessed, appropriate measures will be in place and any necessary PPE provided.
If you are currently working for a local authority and want to return there at the end of the contract, you will need permission from your employing borough. It’s a great opportunity to take part in this team at the cutting edge of using HHSRS in enforcement on tower blocks. Your employers would get back an upskilled team member, and a sum of up to £8k is available to assist in recruiting to each vacancy caused by EH posts seconding to the JIT team.
The requirements
We need a fire engineer to be lead fire safety expert onsite inspections of high rise blocks, and a key witness in Tribunals and Court. You’ll need to be personable, have excellent written skills and be of impeccable character. You will also need to have a master’s degree in fire engineering, worked on fire safety policy at a national level, and practical experience of multi-disciplinary work.
If you have any question about this role, please contact Brian Castle at brian.castle@local.gov.uk or tel. on 07833 046708
To apply
Please complete the online form and a supporting statement detailing how you meet the criteria, in no more than 1000 words.
Closing date: 5pm, Monday 25th May
Interview date: Thursday 4th June, interviews will be held remotely
As a Disability Confident Leader the LGA values diversity and encourages applications from all sections of the community