Job Details:Salary range: £56,436 - £66,084 per annum. Salary negotiable depending upon experience
Work location: Westminster City Hall, 64 Victoria Street, Westminster, SW1E 6QP
Hours per week: 36
Contract type: Permanent
Closing date: 4 March 2026
About Us:The extraordinary story of the power of empowerment.
Environmental Health at Westminster City Council is a world of extraordinary stories, where passionate and expert professionals go above and beyond for their communities every day.
Natasha started her career in the NHS. She came to Westminster to do more for vulnerable people. When a family in her community reached out to her after their heating was cut off, Natasha took their situation seriously. Living in terrible conditions, and reaching desperation, they had nowhere else to turn. Natasha stepped in, holding the landlord to account and getting them to improve conditions for the family. These are the moments that make her the proudest. Now, she uses her expertise and experience to empower others.The Role:As Principal Officer, you too can make a powerful contribution. Delivering Westminster’s Property Licensing schemes including the new selective licensing scheme in one of the largest private rented sectors in the UK.
First, a little history. In 2021, Westminster launched a borough‑wide additional HMO licensing scheme that improved housing conditions across houses in multiple occupation. Building on that success, the Council launched selective licensing on the 24th of November 2025 to tackle poor housing standards and anti‑social behaviour in the wider private rented sector. Selective licensing has been introduced in 15 of 18 of Westminster’s wards covering an estimated 44,000 private rented properties. You’ll be joining us at the start of this journey, helping to improve management standards in the city’s private rented sector.
You will play an essential role in delivering Westminster’s Property Licensing schemes. You will support the team, overseeing licence support processes, ensuring consistency, accuracy and compliance with legislation by leading the Quality Assurance (QA) function.
You will provide high-level technical advice and guidance on licensing to the team, acting as the subject matter expert and point of contact for complex licensing enquiries.
You will have line management responsibility for 3 Senior Licensing Support Officers, managing their performance, supporting their development through regular one-to-ones, and providing pastoral support.
You will assist managers in monitoring performance, writing reports and producing data on Selective Licensing including financial reporting.
You will support other teams in enforcing property licensing, through preparing evidence packs and intelligence to support investigations. You will also support the service in ensuring debt owed from the service of enforcement notices is accounted for and recovered.
We’ll look to you to guide the team, shape policy and drive strategy.
You’ll contribute to continuous improvement of systems, procedures and customer experience. Providing guidance, training and supervision to licensing support staff.
Westminster celebrates diversity, you’ll help to embed Westminster values, fostering a culturally competent, inclusive, workforce that identifies with our community and consistently models positive values and behaviours.
Please refer to the Job Description for more information.About You:We are seeking an experienced Principal Officer for the Licensing Support team to provide high-level operational, technical and administrative support. We are particularly interested in candidates with recent Private Rented Sector Licensing Experience, with a formal qualification in environmental health/housing or demonstrable relevant experience.
You will play a central role in delivering Westminster’s Selective Licensing and HMO Licensing Schemes.
You will have a strong understanding of applying relevant legislation and regulations, as well as being comfortable explaining and applying both. As the expert in your discipline, you’ll advice and guide colleagues, partners and external stakeholders on complex issues and help others to develop their knowledge and expertise. Knowledge and Experience of Private Rented Sector legislation and regulation such as the Housing Act 2004 is highly beneficial.
An exceptional communicator, you’re able to build productive partnerships and working relationships. You’re adept at providing high level, professional/technical advice to colleagues, partners and stakeholders to contribute to the delivery of selective, additional and mandatory HMO licensing. This is paired with strong customer service skills and experience of delivering for residents at a high level.
Westminster City Council is committed to supporting Care Leavers into the workplace. Care Leavers seeking their first job and who wish to be considered under our scheme, will automatically be invited to interview should they meet the essential criteria for the role.
The Council is committed to achieving diverse shortlists to support our desire to increase the number of staff from underrepresented groups in our workforce. We especially encourage applications from a Global Majority (GM), people who are Black, Asian, Brown, dual-heritage, indigenous to the global south, and or have been racialised as 'ethnic minorities' (formally known as B.A.M.E , Black, Asian and multiple ethnic) background and, while the role is open to all applicants, we will utilise the positive action provisions of the Equality Act 2010 to appoint a candidate from a global majority background where there is a choice between two candidates of equal merit. If you are from a Global Majority background you can self-declare this to the hiring manager as part of our positive action commitments.
We reserve the right to extend or close this vacancy early without warning subject to the volume of suitable applicants.What We Offer:Westminster is an amazing place. We are home to more than 200,000 residents from all backgrounds, over 50,000 vibrant and vital businesses and three-quarters-of-a-million people work in Westminster. Westminster City Council’s strategy is to work towards a Fairer Westminster. A Fairer Westminster is one in which our communities are at the heart of our decision-making and help to determine the city's future. By working directly with our communities and other partners, we can build a more inclusive city that celebrates our diverse communities, and where residents, workers and visitors from all backgrounds will feel welcome and safe.
At Westminster City Council, we pride ourselves on being an inclusive workplace and employer of choice. We encourage and welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that, at all levels, represents the communities we serve. We champion equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, has a sense of belonging and is empowered to be their best, that is the Westminster Way. To find out more about how we do this visit https://www.westminster.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/public-health-strategy-policies-and-reports/equality-duties
As a forward thinking Council we appreciate that people work in different ways, therefore our staff benefit from working a range of flexible working patterns as well as Agile working.
The Council is a Disability Confident Employer. If you have declared a disability in your application , we guarantee an interview if you meet the essential criteria of the job. If you are invited for interview, you will be asked if you need any reasonable adjustments in order to attend, and we will make these wherever possible.
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