Community Safety Officer

About you

Being a Community Safety Officer is a front-line role. It involves carrying out foot patrols around the city, engaging with members of the public, business owners, people who might be homeless, as well as colleagues in the Council or from our partner agencies, such as the police.

You must have excellent communication and negotiation skills and be able to remain calm and patient when dealing with confrontational situations, de-escalating them as you come across them.

Ideally, you will have previous experience in tackling anti-social behaviour and have knowledge of the tools and powers used by Councils and the police. You must be able to identify and be able to problem solve, the challenges and issues you will encounter on your patrols.

About the role

As a Community Safety Officer, you will provide a regular, visible presence in the city centre and the surrounding areas, such as our parks and open spaces, and neighbourhood shopping precincts.

You will help to address instances of anti-social behaviour, challenging those involved, gathering information, making good use of the tools and powers available, and by working with our partners to help make our city safer for all.

You must be victim focused, provide a high quality of customer service, and work to support those who are vulnerable or at risk of harm. You will be there from first point of contact through to resolution, including advising and supporting complainants, witnesses and perpetrators.

You will also be involved in providing a response to stray dogs, environmental crime, and makeshift encampments. From the point a complaint is received, through to resolution. In doing so, you will work alongside other City Council departments, such as our CCTV Control Room, Housing, Environmental Health and Cleansing Teams, fostering close working relationships and taking a One Council approach.

Whilst on duty, you will always wear a uniform that identifies you as a member of the Community Safety Team. You will also be provided with personal protective equipment, a body worn video camera, and a radio.

This role involves regular foot patrols across the city, which includes negotiating stairwells, and being able to stand for extended periods. You must hold a Full Clean Driving license and be prepared to work shifts, between 7am and 10pm.

If successful, you will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and be required to undertake police vetting to become part of the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme (CSAS), issued by Devon & Cornwall Police.

As part of your role, you may be required to both write and provide witness statements and attend court proceedings.

About the team

The team lead on community safety across Exeter by providing a regular visible presence in the city centre and within Exeter's parks and open spaces, cemeteries and neighbourhood shopping precincts areas, to address complaints of anti-social behaviour, stray dogs, enviro crime and encampments.

Partnership working is an important success factor for the team, as a strong city partnership approach ensures anti-social behaviour and crime is addressed swiftly and effectively and help in finding the right solutions for Exeter. The post holder will work closely with our CCTV Control Room, Exeter Business Against Crime (EBAC), InExeter, and Devon & Cornwall Police.

The team are part of the Council's Place department, working towards the City Council's Corporate Plan and "Making our city safer for all", which is the focus for Safer Exeter, our local community safety partnership. We are committed to ensuring the safety of our students, residents, visitors and workers.

What next?

If we sound like the right fit for you and you feel like the right fit for us we would welcome your application. Please click on the Apply button at the bottom of this page.

Alternatively if you would like to find out more about the post, the team or working with us at the Council please contact Matt Roberts, Community Safety Partnership Manager at matt.roberts@exeter.gov.uk

We reserve the right to close any vacancy before the closing date if enough applications are received.

Our commitment

At Exeter City Council we are fully committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve.

To support this commitment we will strive to implement reasonable adjustments to support any members of our communities who face barriers in recruitment processes, irrespective of the reason.

We are also proud to be a Disability Confident Employer and have committed to guaranteeing an interview to anyone with a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.