Licensing Officer Why Work for us: Employee benefits (southampton.gov.uk) Southampton City Council has seen the number of licensed private hire vehicles double over the last 10 years and to meet government standards has increased the number of checks for applicants. As licence fees can only be used to cover the cost of administering the service the Licensing Team is looking to fill a new post to support the taxi licensing process The team also administer other regimes, namely Gambling, Licensing Act, Pleasure boats, Charitable collections, Street Trading, Scrap Metal and Sex establishments. The successful applicant will be responsible for processing applications ensuring they meet legal and local policy standards. Providing guidance to prospective applicants. Identifying any breaches and reporting them to enforcement officers. A presence is required in the office at core hours of 0900 to noon and 2pm to 4pm but this can be shared amongst the team to allow working from home and flexible hours of work. The overriding principle of licensing is the protection of the public. The successful applicant will be assisting in keeping those who live, work or visit Southampton to be safe. The salary starts at £29,777 with annual incremental increases as well as any cost of living increases approved, a generous annual leave entitlement plus the opportunity to flexi time (resources permitting). Contact details for informal discussion: For further information and details regarding the position, please contact Phil Bates, Service Manager -Licencing at phil.batessouthampton.gov.uk Recruitment contact details: Email: recruitmentsouthampton.gov.uk Tel: 023 8083 4033 Additional information: The working hours for this role are 37 hours per week. This is a permanent position. Please note that appointments are usually made at the bottom of the salary scale. How to apply: To apply for the position please select the 'Apply for this job' button at the bottom of the page. The supporting statement section of the application form must be completed, unless there are specific criteria questions for you to evidence against. Applications are shortlisted against the essential and desirable criteria found within the job description for the post. Please refer to the job description when completing your application form and evidence how you meet the required criteria/questions. A CV on its own will not be considered. Unfortunately we are not able to accept applications that are made through a third party agency. We cannot guarantee that any correspondence sent from third party agencies will be responded to. To ensure your application is received please apply directly through our website. We are proud to be DisabilityConfident and support fair recruitment practices. Find out how you can get involved at gov.uk/disability-confident. No applicant or employee will receive less favourable treatment because of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage or civil partnership and pregnancy or maternity, unless a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) applies. Southampton City Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. It is committed to delivering services to ensure they are happy, safe and have opportunities to reach their goals as responsible members of our community. We believe it is always unacceptable for a child, young person or adult to experience abuse of any kind, and recognise our responsibility to safeguard and promote their welfare. We are committed to following safe practices to ensure this and expect all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. This commitment is reflected in all our recruitment and selection practices. As a Corporate Parent we are actively aiming to support all our children in care (looked after children) and care leavers. Any applicants who are children in care or care leavers, who meet the essential criteria for the post applied for, will be guaranteed an interview.