Lawyer - Education/SEN

About the role

A unique opportunity to build a team and influence one of the largest and newest unitary Councils

North Northamptonshire Council is an ambitious, exciting, innovative and supportive place to work. The Council is committed to focused service delivery to improve the lives of our residents. Following local government reform, we are well on our way into our transformation journey to deliver excellent services in an inclusive and creative environment where ideas are encouraged alongside a commitment to staff development.

We have invested in our legal team to support delivery of the Council’s priorities and created a structure that supports the team to deliver an holistic legal service across the Council’s functions. This is an exciting time to join us and be integral in building, establishing, and developing the team providing high quality trusted advice.  

We are committed to your personal development; the variety of work delivers an exciting mixed caseload for the team. Our approach provides you with an opportunity to influence and play a broad role in the Council and the way it delivers services to residents.

As a member of the team, you will be supported at a senior level and by your peers in a growing and developing team of professionals. The team’s focus is on enabling service delivery, to achieve this we adopt a partnering model with our clients, supporting them to deliver an ambitious agenda for North Northamptonshire.     

The newly created team provides an exciting opportunity for applicants whatever stage they are at in their career. We are committed to developing, nurturing, and growing talent from legal assistants, to the managers of the future. As a unitary authority, the opportunities are varied and broad providing a unique opportunity to shape processes and grow with the Council as it develops.

What will you be doing?

We are looking for a Lawyer specialising in Education/SEN to join our in-house legal team. The role will require you to undertake a caseload of work including:

• Providing general and specialist Education/SEN legal advice
• Advocacy in courts and tribunals, pre-action and Judicial Review matters
• School admissions appeals and exclusion appeals processes
• Advising on law, policy, strategy and procedure relating to Education/SEN issues

It is desirable, but not essential, that you have local government experience, however, training and support would be offered as part of your continuous professional development.

If this sounds like a job for you, we would love to hear from you. The closing date for applications is 2nd June 2024 and interviews will take place w/c 12th June 2024.  

If you would like to have a discussion about the role, please contact Kamila Coulson-Patel, Assistant Director, on 07974 881258.

Please refer to the attached Job description for full details of job responsibilities

About you

You will:

• Hold a relevant degree and be a qualified CILEX, Solicitor or Barrister, licensed to practice.
• Effectively and appropriately provide and communicate legal advice commensurate to experience to Members, Officers and other stakeholders generally and at committee meetings.
• Have experience in Education/SEN work.

Please refer to the attached person specification for full details of Essential and Desirable skills, qualifications and experience required for this role.

Our benefits

We offer:

• a competitive salary
• a pension scheme, where we pay a significant contribution on top of your contribution. It provides life cover and ill-health protection.
• opportunities to develop your skills, knowledge and potential in a large unitary council
• generous leave entitlement (28 days, rising to 33 days) and bank holidays, plus the option to buy up to an extra 10 days
• agile and flexible working arrangements to help you with a healthy work-life balance.

About us

We are a new unitary council, established in April 2021; we are one of the largest unitary councils in the country. Our vision for North Northants is to be 'A place where everyone has the best opportunities and quality of life'.

Our priorities are:

• helping people live active fulfilled lives
• caring for our young people, providing them with high quality education and opportunities
• enabling a thriving and successful economy
• leading on a green and sustainable environment
• ensuring our communities are connected so they can shape their lives and where they live
• providing modern public services

Our values, as chosen by our staff, are - Customer-focused, Respectful, Efficient, Supportive and Trustworthy.

Your differences make us different - Achieve Together.