Planning and Environment Lawyer (Senior Legal Adviser)

The Role:

Join our friendly and supportive Lexcel accredited legal department, passionate about delivering the best for Hampshire and making a real difference to the community! 

Hampshire County Council is recognised nationally as one of the highest performing local authorities in the UK.  Our large legal service supports all Hampshire County Council directorates and a wide range of other public service organisations. Working on matters that are as challenging as they are rewarding, you will advise on a range of interesting, varied, meaningful, high profile and complex projects at the very forefront of public interest, delivering improvements to people's lives.

We are looking for an in-house Planning and Environment Lawyer - a qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive Lawyer (Fellow of CILEX) with a current practising certificate for England & Wales.  You will be successful in the role if you are able to demonstrate sound legal skills and judgment; a pragmatic solution focussed approach; strong client relationship and communication skills; an ability to work on your own initiative and within a strong team with a collaborative approach; resilience and motivation; and an ability to prioritise effectively to meet strict deadlines.

You will join the Planning and Environment Team, working with colleagues in all Hampshire County Council Directorates and third-party clients.  This role includes the provision of legal advice and representation to the County Council’s directorates, committees, members and other external partners and client bodies. Your role will not only increase the efficiency of the team but also that of the County Council as a whole and offers the unique level of support that comes with working within our well-respected team and Hampshire County Council generally.

You will take responsibility for a large and varied casework, some of which may be complex planning work such as s.106, s.278 and s.38 agreements, legal research, public inquiries and offering assistance and mentoring to colleagues. 

What We Can Offer You:

Having successfully adopted online and hybrid working, we can consider candidates from out of the area, working partially remotely and from our offices in Winchester.

As a forward-looking local authority, our commitment to delivering an exceptional quality of life to our Hampshire residents also extends to our employees. It is important to us that our staff feel supported in their work.  As such we can offer you an improved work-life balance through flexible working and an excellent benefits package including:

• Access to Local Government Pension Scheme; 
• Between 25 - 30 days annual leave entitlement (dependent on Local Authority service);
• Electric plug-in hybrid car - Salary Sacrifice Scheme;
• Interest free travel loans and discounts; 
• Employee Support Services; 
• Family friendly policies;
• Access to online professional legal research resources. 

To learn more about the HLS team please visit Hampshire Legal Services.