Illicit Tobacco & Under Age Sales Officer

• Reference: SCC/TP/287909/3529
• Positions: 1
• Salary: £35,730 per annum
• Category: Trading Standards
• Contract type: Fixed term
• Working hours: 36 hours per week
• Posted on: 17 July 2025
• Closing date: 5 August 2025
• Directorate: Chief Executive Office
• Location: Aylesbury

The starting salary for this role is £35,730 per annum for working 36 hours per week.

This is a 24-month fixed term contract/ secondment opportunity.

We are hiring an Illicit Tobacco and Under Age Sales Officer to join our Trading Standards Team in Buckinghamshire, based at County Hall, Aylesbury.

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources

About the Team

The team helps to protect the most vulnerable residents within Buckinghamshire and Surrey by tackling fraudulent, illegal and unfair trading practices, with a particular focus on activities to disrupt criminal activity. We enable businesses to get the help and support they need to thrive and grow and work to improve regulatory compliance to ensure a level playing field.

We improve wellbeing and public health through tackling the supply of unsafe, dangerous or age restricted products.

Trading Standards protects individuals, communities and businesses from harm and financial loss and helps businesses to thrive by maintaining a fair trading environment. We also enforce over 200 pieces of legislation and regulations and is intel informed about what areas of work to focus on.

About the role

In this role you will devise and carry out interventions to contribute to the age restricted sales regime. This will include liaison with a variety of enforcement partners and organisations including public health, the police and His Majesty's Revenue & Customs. You will have responsibility for leading under age sales operations, conducting visits to businesses to assess their compliance in respect to the sales of illicit tobacco, vapes, knives and nitrous oxide. Additionally, you will investigate incidents of non-conformity.

To be shortlisted to interview for this position your application will clearly evidence:

• An ability to understand, interpret and apply relevant legislation governing the work in this area.
• An ability to provide statutory advice and guidance to businesses relating to illicit goods.
• An ability to confidently engage in difficult and complex conversations with a variety of audiences.
• Experience of de-escalating conflict and difficult situations.
• A proven ability to manage their own priorities and workloads.
• An ability to investigate non-conformities.
• An ability to use a variety of databases and systems to record actions and outcomes appropriately.

A driving licence and access to a car will be essential as part of the role will involve travelling to various locations across Buckinghamshire. The role supports hybrid working and the administrative base will be at the Walton Street offices in Aylesbury. Satisfactory DBS clearance is required for the role.

Contact us
Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 05/08/2025 with interviews to follow.

Local Government Reorganisation

Surrey County Council is preparing for Local Government Reorganisation which will allow us to implement the Government led policy of devolution, which is all about giving more powers to local areas.

Currently, Surrey has a two-tier council system, with 11 district and borough councils and a county council, all responsible for different services. All these councils will be reorganised into a smaller number of new unitary councils which will come into effect in April 2027. At this point, this role will be transferred, with all existing terms and conditions intact into one of the new unitary councils.

Join our dynamic team and shape the future of local government. Make a lasting impact with innovative solutions and improved services for our community. Help us build a brighter future for our residents!

Our Values
Our values are as important as our abilities and shape who we are as an organisation. Discover more about ourvalues .

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description.Our Life at Surrey handbook provides insights of the culture at Surrey and how as a valued employee, you can help shape our Council.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applicants where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role. We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.