1.How many Trading Standards Officers in your Local Authority, by full-time equivalent (FTE), in each of the following years: 2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2018,2019,2020,2021?
Devon County Council (DCC) Trading Standards Service 2007-13
2007 – 37.90 (plus 3 Animal Health Officers )
2008 – 39.90 (plus 4 Animal Health Officers)
2009 – 31.48 (plus 10.41 Animal Health Officers)
2010 – 32.07 (plus 10.11 Animal Health Officers)
2011 – 51.26 (no Animal Health Officers – Animal Health enforcement conducted by Trading Standards Officers from this date)
2012 – 48.12
2013 – 43.98
Devon, Somerset and Torbay Trading Standards Service 2018-2021
2018 – 46.27
2019 – 39.09
2020 – 43.86
2021 – 46.44
2. How many Trading Standards Officers hold qualifications in Animal Health and Welfare for these years?
There is currently no statutory qualification for Animal Health or Welfare enforcement. All Trading Standards Officers have received training appropriate to their role and since 2010 this has included Animal Health and Welfare enforcement.
Three officers have held the Chartered Institute of Trading Standards Certificate of Competence in Animal Health in this time period.
Eleven Officers have held the Diploma in Consumer Affairs and Trading Standards module certificate in animal Health and Welfare in this period.
3. Number of FTE animal health qualified staff working on Animal Health And Welfare Enforcement in your Local Authority for these years?
DCC do not hold this information due to varying work patterns.
4. How many premises with an animal health & welfare inspection risk were there in your Local Authority for these years? (How many of these were farms?)
DCC do not hold this information in a way that enables historic data – for earlier years, closed premises have been deleted in line with DCC retention policy. For later years, premises change their inspection risk, so as to bring them in or take them out of the terms of this request, and a cross check of when those events occurred is not available.
From a previous FOI in 2019 the Devon, Somerset and Torbay Trading Standards Service held 21,648 livestock premises (Animal Health and Welfare inspection risk) and currently the Heart of the South West Trading Standards Service (which additionally includes the area of Plymouth City Council) holds 22,322.
DCC do not hold separate figures for farms.
5. How many complaints or referrals relating to animal health and welfare were received for these years?
DCC do not hold figures prior to 2016
2016 – 273
2017 – 890
2018 – 827
2019 – 611
2020 – 660
2021 – 759
These figures relate to the Devon and Somerset Trading Standards Service to May 2017. From May 2017 they relate to the Devon, Somerset and Torbay Trading Standards Service and from April 2021 they relate to the Heart of the South West Trading Standards Service which also includes the area of Plymouth City Council
6. How many farm inspections/visits did your Local Authority carry out in each of these years? (If possible, please split between Random, risk-based, compliance-based and targeted inspections (or other please specify)
DCC do not hold records for 2007-2013, 2016-2017. The figures below are not recorded in the broken down format requested.
2018 – 338
2019 – 273
2020 – 239
2021 – 162
7. How many of these inspections were found to be non-compliant and required some remedial action in each of these years?
2018 – 208
2019 – 157
2020 – 104
2021 – 98
8. How many of the following enforcement actions were taken in each of these years: advice, warnings, prosecution (or other please specify)?
DCC do not hold figures for advice and warnings
| Year | Simple Caution | Prosecution |
| 2007 | 7 | 5 |
| 2008 | 42 | 10 |
| 2009 | 19 | 10 |
| 2010 | 19 | 9 |
| 2011 | 10 | 3 |
| 2012 | 7 | 3 |
| 2013 | 16 | 3 |
| 2018 | 2 | 7 |
| 2019 | 3 | 8 |
| 2020 | 5 | 4 |
| 2021 | 3 | 2 |
9. Please provide the Trading Standards Service budget for these years and the budget for animal health and welfare in these years
2007/8 and 2008/9 – DCC do not hold this information
2009/10 – £2,690,000 Inc Animal Health £501,000
2010/11 – £2,634,000 Inc Animal Health £501, 000
2011/12 – £2,326000 Animal Health not referenced separately from this date
2012/13 – £2,447,000
2013/14 – £2,247, 000
2018/19 – £1,816,000 From this date the figure now includes the budget for the joint service in Devon, Somerset and Torbay, but not Plymouth
2019/20 – £1,836,000
2020/21 – £1,882,000
2021/22 – £1,876,000