Legal Counsel

Legal Counsel
Contract: Permanent, part-time, 21-25 hours a week
Salary £48,314 - £50,729 pa (pro rata to hours worked), depending on experience, with excellent benefits
Location London, UK
Hybrid Working: A minimum of 40% of working time is spent face to face, either in London office, or as a result of external engagement or travel for WaterAid. WaterAid is located at Canary Wharf, London and this will be your location and contract base.
About WaterAid:
Want to use your legal skills to play a vital role in making clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone everywhere?
We need passionate, creative and dedicated people. In return, you will be encouraged and empowered to be yourself at your very best. Together, we will make a bigger difference.
Join WaterAid as a Legal Counsel to change normal for millions of people so they can unlock their potential, break free from poverty and change their lives for good.
About the Team:
The Global Assurance Team at WaterAid reports directly to the Chief Executive of WaterAid UK, with an independent reporting line to the Audit and Risk Committee. The team is made up of the following functions: Legal and Governance, Data Protection, Fundraising Compliance, Global Ethical Standards, and Internal Audit. The team is line-managed by the Global Assurance Director.

About the Role:
As our Legal Counsel you will report to the Head of Legal and support them in providing legal support to WaterAid in the UK.
In this role, you will provide sound and pragmatic legal advice to all levels of the organisation.

You'll also:

• Review and help to negotiate existing and new contracts, in particular supplier contracts and grant agreements, recognising and responding to the risks;
• contribute to the development and training of colleagues to drive best practise in contract management;
• respond to legal queries from across WaterAid; and
• maintain and develop the legal resources including agreement templates.

About You:
You will be a qualified solicitor (English law) with 2+ years PQE,
To be successful, you'll need:

• A combination of commercial and contract law experience gained in-house or in a pro-active private practice environment
• A proactive approach to identifying legal risks and providing pragmatic and balanced solutions, managing expectations;
• To display high ethical standards and maintain confidentiality at all times; and
• The ability to work calmly and effectively under pressure and supportively but assertively hold senior managers to account.

Although not essential, we also prefer you to have:

• Awareness of relevant Charity and Company law and knowledge of best practice.
• Knowledge of the workings of the Charities Commission and the Fundraising Regulator.
• Experience in providing high-quality customer service to a diverse range of customers.

Closing date: Applications will close at 23:59 on 21st April 2024. Availability for an interview is required on 1st - 2nd May 2024.
How to Apply: To see the full job pack, please click 'Apply'. Please apply by submitting your CV and a cover letter in one document in either Word Document or PDF format.
Pre-employment screening: To apply for this post, you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in the UK. All our vacancies require a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check to comply with our Safer Recruitment policy.

Our Benefits:

• 36 days' holiday (including 8 Bank Holidays)
• Option to buy an extra 5 days annual leave
• We offer a generous pension plan with employer contribution of up to 10%
• Wide range of flexible and agile-working arrangement
• Season Ticket Loan
• Free annual eye tests
• Pay as You Give charitable giving scheme
• Enhanced Maternity and Adoption/Surrogacy pay, Shared Parental Leave and Paternity Leave
• Sabbaticals
• Volunteer Day

Our Commitment
Our People Promise:
We will work with passion and focus to ensure safe and sustainable water, toilets and hygiene are available to everyone, everywhere. WaterAid is a place of purpose - where people have a real commitment and shared responsibility for the impact we have. We are a global community with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, motivated by inspiring, stimulating work. We are determined to put the wellbeing of our people first, to be a place where people feel safe and able to contribute their voice and truly live our values.
Equal opportunities:
We are an equal opportunity, disability-confident employer and are dedicated to achieving the highest standards of diversity, equity and inclusion. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, beliefs, customs, traditions and ways of life. This includes, but is not limited to, race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion, national or social origin, health status, and economic or social situation.
Safeguarding:
We are also committed to protecting everyone we come into contact with. We have a zero-tolerance approach to abuse of power, privilege or trust across our global work, and any form of inappropriate behaviour, discrimination, abuse, bullying, harassment, or exploitation. Safeguarding the people and communities we work with, our staff, volunteers and anyone working on our behalf is our top priority, and we take our responsibilities extremely seriously.