As the year-end looms, local authorities often find themselves engaging private companies and consultants to assist in meeting inspection targets. Julian Wells, an independent EHO, offers a step-by-step guide to choosing a food inspection contractor.

The decision to engage a private contractor to help in food inspection programmes can be a step into a minefield. What starts as an exercise in expediency at year-end, can become an administrative nightmare as staff rebel and rate payers bend the ear of their local councillor over conflicts of interest. But it need not be a problem.

PLAN IN ADVANCE
Contractors are normally taken on as a way of managing a crisis, but this means there is little chance to plan in advance. It is much better to think the process through without this pressure before any decision is made. Also, consider the in-house team. How do you think your staff feel when, having worked hard all year, they then start to fall short of targets and it is left to outside contractors to pull the whole thing together? It is much better to drip feed work to contractors throughout the year.

KNOWING WHAT YOU WANT
It sounds obvious, but simple decisions made in advance of meeting potential contractors can save time and money. Here is a simple checklist of questions to ask yourself:

• How many premises and what categories do you want inspected?
• Will you give unhindered access to files?
• Do you want pre-appointments or unannounced visits?
• What do you want to do about "no access" visits?
• Do you want the health and safety elements of the inspection covered?
• How far do you want enforcement to go?

and linked to this:

• What level of authorisation will you grant?
• Do you want reporting and letters to be standardised, perhaps using standard phrases, or do you want bespoke letters and reports?
• Will the administration section cope with additional typing and filing?
• What do you want to do about revisits?
• What do you want to do about follow up action?
• Do you want to pay by the hour or per inspection?
• If you want to pay per inspection, is this based on the existing category or the new score category?

Here is a checklist of questions to ask the contractor:

• What are the qualifications and experience of the inspecting staff?
• Who are former/current clients and can they provide references?
• What arrangements are in place to supervise staff and ensure consistency?
• What arrangements are in place for out-of-hours contact?
• What level of professional and public liability cover is provided?
• What arrangements for health and safety of staff are made?
• What equipment is provided?

There are many myths which circulate about consultant EHOs and the organisations that employ them. Some are based on misunderstanding, some on misrepresentation, some on malicious gossip. Most are untrue. The truth is that we are all part of the one profession - consultant EHOs have a role and when employed properly can be a cost effective way of providing support to your permanent staff. Close analysis of the individuals available to carry out the work will pare the field down to three broad types.

THE AGENCY EHO
Agencies come in many guises and some specialise in environmental health. All will maintain a database of self-employed EHOs who choose, for a variety of reasons, not to maintain full-time employment within the profession.

Strengths: You set out the nature of the work, the criteria to be met, the fees to be paid. The agency then presents the right person. If you do not like their choice, the agency will supply a replacement. Likewise, if anything goes wrong (standard of work, clashes with in-house staff, sickness, etc).

Weaknesses: Internal communication may be poor. You set out what you want from the agency, which then communicates this to their selected EHO. This may mean further clarification on the first day of contract. Agencies make money by retaining a percentage of the fee, which may raise issues between the EHO and the agency and impact on the quality of the work. Also, as it is in the interest of the agency to get as many EHOs on their books as possible, their vetting procedure may be less than stringent.

Opportunities: Agencies are a fertile ground for finding new staff, but there are likely to be covenants that mean fees are paid where you decide to take on agency staff permanently.

Threats: Agencies employ professional sales and marketing people to promote and advertise their business, so careful scrutiny is needed.

THE COMPNY EHO
These are full or part-time employees of companies that specialise in environmental health. In some cases, the EHO may be an "associate" (effectively a sub contractor).

Strengths: The company is obliged to honour the commitment should any problems develop. Company EHOs will tend to approach inspections in a formulaic manner; checklists are a favourite and consistency in approach, with a rigid inspecting and reporting regime is a trademark. They will be well trained and are likely to have access to considerable in-house resources such as technical back up, reference material and administrative support.

Weaknesses: You are buying a culture and work ethic that will not necessarily match that of the local authority. What is gained in consistency may be lost in lack of flexibility or application of initiative during inspections. The company EHO's first loyalty will be to his/her employer.

Opportunities: Much can be gained from experiencing the commercial approach that these organisations adopt and the exchange of ideas and techniques benefit both parties. More explicitly, the in-house resource they offer in terms of training and technical support can be tapped into.

Threats: Environmental health companies have an agenda to build their business base. Local authorities provide a doorway to valuable information about commercial operations in the area. Having a local authority contract can give credibility to an environmental health company when tendering for private sector work. Care must be take to ensure that your relationship with them is not exploited.

THE SOLE TRADER EHO
Self-employed EHOs who work alone or within partnerships.

Strengths: You will be negotiating the contract with the person doing the work, so decisions on suitability and reaching equitable arrangements is easier. Sole trader EHOs offer more flexibility and are likely to be more amenable to changes in contract terms. The personal reputation of the sole trader EHO is directly related to the quality of their work, so they have a vested longer-term interest in performing well.

Weaknesses: The resources they can draw upon are limited. Sickness, injury or the arrival of more lucrative work might place your targets in jeopardy. Because they are self-employed, they may not be able to meet the financial criteria demanded of contractors for higher value contracts. Also, their cash flow demands might mean more interim invoicing than your finance department would like.

Opportunities: The flexibility they bring can offer the ability to exploit other areas of their expertise, without necessarily rewriting the terms and conditions of their engagement.

Threats: What is true of company EHOs is also true of the sole trader, save that you have the opportunity to judge personal integrity during the face-to-face negotiations.

MAKING THE DECISION
In making the choice, do not lose sight of the fact that the contractor will be out there not just completing inspections. He or she is dealing with your customers, the rate payers, and is an ambassador for your department. Whatever criteria you apply in selection you have to be comfortable with them and in turn they must work in empathy with what you are trying to achieve.
Contracted consultants are no substitute for a properly resourced environmental health department that can sustain permanent staffing levels to achieve all that is required. Until this is achieved, there will be a need for consultant staff - the trick is to choose wisely in an informed way.