About us

Hillingdon Council: Putting our Residents first.

Hillingdon is London's second largest borough. Our staff live across Hillingdon and beyond, with our main council offices at the Civic Centre in the heart of vibrant Uxbridge town centre. Putting our residents first is at the heart of everything we do, and we are embarking on an ambitious plan to modernise our service offering, while sustaining the high-quality delivery.

We operate a busy, innovative and dynamic Legal Department, which is committed to providing high-quality, client focused legal services. The team works in close collaboration with our service areas providing a comprehensive support service across a wide range of Council areas including adult and children's care, planning, housing and litigation.

About the role

This role attracts a competitive salary £42,795 - £46,857, alongside a £1500 bonus on successful completion of your probation period.

To assist in the provision of an efficient and cost-effective legal service to all relevant departments such as the Planning Team, Highways Team and Specialist Planning Team

Key Responsibilities

Key responsibilities of the role will include;

• Conduct of cases in all Courts, Tribunals etc to appear personally on the Council's behalf in all Civil and Criminal Courts and before Tribunals, Inquiries etc

• Instruct Counsel and other experts, as required

• Drafting legal documents, including section 106 agreements as required by the client departments to fulfil their functions

• To attend and advise at Committee and Sub-Committee meetings in relation to work undertaken by the Planning & Corporate Team

• To attend and advise at meetings of working parties and officer groups as a representative of the Planning & Corporate Team

• To give legal advice to the departments served by the Planning & Corporate Team as and when required.

• Keep clients, Members and officers informed of new legislation and case law relevant to their operations to ensure that they maintain a sound appreciation of legal requirements.

• To provide legal comments for reports to Cabinet Members, Cabinet and other Committees

• To assist client departments in unravelling the implications of new legislation and case law.

About you

Our ideal candidate will have been admitted as a Solicitor or Barrister or a Legal Executive in England and Wales or Common Law jurisdiction, with a background in planning, highways or environmental law. You will have the ability to manage a demanding caseload, with high levels of attention to detail and a track record in effective decision making. You will have excellent communication skills, be highly organised and with a high degree of professionalism.

What we offer

This role represents a fantastic opportunity for a legal professional looking to further their career within local government. You will be part of a high performing team engaged in interesting and stimulating work.

We offer significant support and training to further assist your development eg Higher Rights of Audience.

We offer a range of Company benefits. These vary according to the business area and role but may include:

• local government average salary pension scheme
• Remote working offer
• free parking (4 days a week) if based at the Civic Centre
• a 36-hour week for all full-time staff
• generous holiday entitlement: a minimum 25 days a year (plus bank holidays), rising to 28 days after five years' service. For more senior positions holiday entitlements can rise to a maximum of 36 days
• career breaks
• flexible working hours
• season ticket loan
• access to a Credit Union
• access to a wide range of training and courses
• discount on a variety of Adult Education courses run by the Council
• payment of professional fees where these are required
• discounts at council-owned leisure centres and swimming pools at Hillingdon (Uxbridge), Queensmead (South Ruislip), Highgrove (Ruislip) and Botwell Green (Hayes)
• cycle purchase scheme
• car sharing scheme
• 30% discount on green fees at council-owned golf courses

Our borough offers fantastic transport links with the A40, M25, the Metropolitan, Elizabeth, and Piccadilly lines all local to us, so you can travel to work with ease, with free parking within our own car park. We also offer a hybrid working arrangements, with time balanced between the office and home or a full work from home option - whatever works for you, works for us. The role will require attendance at meetings outside of working hours, and you may be required to attend a range of locations across the borough.

Please upload your CV and a covering letter explaining clearly why you consider yourself to be an excellent fit for the role.

Additional information

Due to an expected high volume of applications, we could close this role early, we therefore recommend you apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Applicants should be aware that the post will only be offered to successful candidates subject to an Enhanced DBS check as well as other employment clearances.