Council seeks £11-an-hour social distancing officer: ‘Resilient character’ who can move on lockdown flouters could earn up to £21,000-a-year
- Flexible Community Support Officer advertised by Kingdom Security in Essex
- Role in West Thurrock will involve ‘making sure that people are social distancing’
- Applicants should have ‘resilient character’ as there is ‘occasional confrontation’
A council is set to hire a community support officer dedicated to helping enforce social distancing rules in Essex.
The role has been advertised by private security firm Kingdom Security, which already enforces litter laws for Thurrock Council and hands out penalty tickets for littering.
The job advertisement describes the Flexible Community Support Officer role as an assignment to help the council ‘patrol the streets, park and other areas around the borough making sure that people are social distancing.’
Applicants, who will earn £11 per hour and be paid weekly, should have a ‘resilient character, as some interaction with the offenders, can occasionally be confrontational.’
Pictured: A police officer speaks to a man in St James’s Park amid coronavirus lockdown in London
They must also have the ability to defuse hostile situations professionally and show good observational skills.
In addition applicants must have ‘effective verbal and written skills and excellent attention to detail for report writing and speaking to members of the public.’
Anyone applying for the role, which will be based in West Thurrock, is also asked to be ‘capable of being on your feet and walking for long periods and in varying weather patterns.’
Councillor Jane Pothecary said: ‘There have been reports of the public ignoring the rules – playing football in parks for example – and the support officer’s role will be to remind people of what they have to do.’
A council is set to hire a community support officer dedicated to helping enforce social distancing rules in Essex
Pictured: A police officer speaks to two people in Trafalgar Square, London on May 3
The lockdown was put in place to help slow the spread of the disease, which has killed more than 28,400 people across the UK amid 183,500 cases
Britons have been asked to stay inside, only leaving the house for essential shopping and daily exercise, since Boris Johnson enforced a coronavirus lockdown on March 23.
The lockdown was put in place to help slow the spread of the disease, which has killed 28,491 people across the UK amid 183,500 cases.
But many Britons have flouted these strict rules, forcing police officers to patrol popular parks in London to ensure the measures are upheld.
Today, officers were photographed patrolling in Crystal Palace park and warning people to abide by the lockdown restrictions after Britons were pictured sitting on the grass.
Traffic data from TomTom has also shown a two per cent increase in the number of cars on the road yesterday, compared to the previous Saturday in London.
A similar pattern could be seen in Manchester which also saw a one per cent increase in traffic compared to the previous Saturday.