Meet Bradley: Senior Environmental Health Officer

At council we cover a lot of different areas of public health and respond to a range of issues, such as food safety, public health concerns, and water quality such as swimming pools and spas. We deal with things that can be quite serious.

Being an Environmental Health Officer can have a huge impact on the community by preventing illnesses like food poisoning and Legionnaires disease.

Every time an Environmental Health Officer issues a legal notice, I’ll review it to make sure we’ve included the right legislation, that we’re asking for things in a correct and fair manner, and that it’s written properly. We always consider how to get the right public health outcomes.

Quite a bit of the role is communication and education – a notice might have a lot of legal language, so we’ll go on site to the business and sit down with them and explain what it means in practical terms.

I studied Health Science at uni, majoring in Public Health, then did a Graduate Diploma in Environmental Health Practice. I wanted a job that was practical, on the ground, not so academic. I was drawn to council because I felt there was better job security here and a great variety of work. We’re always learning and growing.

"The job is important and we’re always busy. I’ve always had a positive experience working at council and appreciate the job security."

Even after doing the work for a while, we still come across new situations that we need to research to work out the best approach. That keeps me motivated and enjoying what I’m doing, because I like to continually challenge myself.

The job is important and we’re always busy. I’ve always had a positive experience working at council and appreciate the job security. They’re so supportive with developing us as individuals and professionals. There are programs like Emerging Leaders that we’re encouraged to take part in.

There are lots of opportunities for secondments – I went on one a couple of years ago to a team leader role. It really opened my eyes to the other side of council, seeing how all the different teams – finance, work health and safety, governance – work together and support each other.

If someone’s interested in applying for a role at council, I always tell them it’s a great place to work, and people with experience in public health are in high demand.