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Associate Director of Legal Services
G6 Up to £74,091 per annum
Welcome letter
Thank you for your interest in the position of Associate Director of the Legal Services Team.
This is a high-profile role that is central to the DBS achieving its vision of making recruitment safer. You will be part of a senior team leading significant change.
You will be joining the DBS Legal Services Team at an exciting time as we continue to grow in numbers and build our in-house capability so that we are positioned to play a key role in supporting the delivery of the DBS 2025 Strategy. I hope it is apparent from the job description that this is a very interesting and varied senior in-house role.
The DBS Legal Service Team is well-respected and highly valued by the organisation. In addition to providing quality legal advice in core areas, we are building a reputation as an essential business partner, adding value across the organisation through early engagement and effective collaboration.
I am looking for someone with the skills, experience, and presence to drive the growth and development of the Legal Services Team to support the delivery of the DBS 2025 Strategy. You must be an inspiring and effective leader; a strong ambassador for both the Team and our “front-footed”, value-adding approach; and, a creative, robust, and talented senior lawyer.
We are a friendly, professional, collaborative, and innovative Team that provides support, challenge, and legal assurance to the DBS. We are looking for candidates who are excellent technically as well as being resilient self-starters with a strategic approach. To be successful in this role you will need to build your knowledge of the DBS quickly and be able to work quickly and collaboratively with members of the Legal Services Team and beyond.
One of the DBS strategic objectives is People – our aim is to develop a talented and diverse workforce that understands how its contributions help to achieve our objectives. We are doing this by investing in our people to build and strengthen our capability, while creating a great place to work.
Our vision requires the Legal Services Team to drive improvement across all that we do, to support the delivery of a high-quality service. Success will only be possible if every member of the Team demonstrates leadership, commitment, energy, and a willingness to challenge the status quo.
If the opportunity to lead, develop and manage a growing, strategically focused in-house legal team in an organisation that plays a crucial role in society appeals to you, I would welcome your application.
Andrew Robertson
Director of Legal Services at DBS
Job description
Directorate Finance & Corporate Services
Location National (contractual base Darlington/Liverpool)
Reports to Director Legal
Line Management Yes
Security Clearance level required SCS
Job purpose
As one of two Associate Directors in the Legal Services Team, you will report to the recently appointed Director of Legal Services.
You will work closely with the Director and Associate Director in leading and developing the growing Legal Services Team, ensuring that the DBS meets all statutory and regulatory requirements.
You will provide proactive and solution-focused strategic and advisory support in relation to a broad range of legal matters. You will identify risks and opportunities, and oversee the legal support provided to the DBS to enable it to make effective and timely decisions against a complex statutory framework.
An important aspect of the role will be leading a team of lawyers and support staff in relation appeal applications to the Upper Tribunal made by individuals in respect of DBS barring decisions. You will be the client’s lead contact in respect of this large body of litigation.
The role will also support the Director of Legal Services in advising the Board and the Strategic Leadership Team. You will deputise for the Director as required. As a key leader of the Legal Services Team, the post holder will work collaboratively with colleagues to ensure that customer/stakeholder needs are met, along with public accountability expectations, legislation, and professional standards.
As the DBS is a member of the Home Office family, you will work closely with other members of the Home Office legal community. Building relationships with colleagues in the Home Office will be key to ensuring the DBS and Home Office expectations, systems, and processes are aligned.
You will also play a pivotal part in the design and development of the legal strategy to support delivery of the DBS 2025 Strategy.
Corporate duties
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Providing effective and inspiring leadership of the Legal Services Team through day-to-day management, guidance, and influence to ensure that the Team has the required capacity, capability, processes, and systems to support the delivery of the DBS 2025 Strategy.
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Leading the Barring Appeals work, including: managing the day-to-day litigation process; identifying, developing, and implementing process improvements; supervising lawyers and support staff in relation to the conduct of cases; dealing with service issues; and, managing relationships with external advisers.
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Acting as line manager for lawyers in the Legal Services Team, including responsibility for effective performance management and development.
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Deputising for the Director of Legal Services and/or representing the Legal Services Team at Board meetings, Strategic Leadership Meetings, Committee Meetings, and meetings with external stakeholders.
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Advising key stakeholders in relation to a broad range of complex legal matters and legislation, ensuring that the support provided both personally and by the Team is of the highest quality.
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Ensuring that the DBS’ business is conducted in line with statutory obligations and strategic considerations.
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Advising in relation to disputes and litigation having regard to, among other things, the DBS’ strategic objectives and attitude to risk.
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Supporting the Commercial Team in relation to the negotiation, drafting, completion, and implementation of key commercial contracts
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Supporting the Director of Legal Services in:
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Budget and forecasting processes, ensuring credible budgets and forecasts are developed that withstand scrutiny by the Strategic Leadership Team, the Board and its committees, Directorate management teams, and other governance forums as appropriate. Also overseeing the monthly external adviser billing process.
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Building and promoting effective stakeholder and partner engagement and collaboration at strategic and operational levels of the DBS.
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Leading the Legal Services Team’s input into complex, multi-discipline projects. Also coordinating external legal advice into such projects.
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Person specification
Essential (E); Desirable (D)
Ability
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Strategic thinking, planning and analysis skills, with the ability to develop creative solutions to support the management of change and mitigate associated risks. (E)
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Excellent relationship management, influencing, facilitation and presentation skills. (E)
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An expert people manager with the ability to build, lead, coach and retain a cohesive and high performing team. (E)
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Presence and credibility to work with the Strategic Leadership Team and senior colleagues across the organisation. (E)
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A skilled negotiator with the ability to perform well under pressure, remain calm but be decisive. (E)
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Highly organised and able to plan and manage a broad portfolio of activities. (E)
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Proactive positive, and determined – able to drive the Legal Team forward with passion and enthusiasm. (E)
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Resilience in challenging circumstances. (E)
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Highly effective communicator in person, in writing, and in electronic media. (E)
Experience
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Leading and developing a legal team with broad responsibilities in a changing environment of comparable scale or complexity in addition to managing the conduct of volume litigation. (E)
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Promoting an in-house legal team as an essential business partner, with a proactive and engaging approach to collaboration with colleagues at all levels, ensuring input into complex, strategic and multi discipline projects (E)
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Implementing and driving efficiencies though the introduction of new procedures, legal frameworks, policies and smarter ways of working within the team. (E)
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Advising management up to and including Boards, Board Committees and/or other senior leadership forums in relation to dispute management, general litigation and a broad range of complex legal matters. (E)
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Providing solution-focused legal advice, including public law and corporate governance matters, at a senior level in Government or other complex public and/or private organisation. (E)
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Managing relationships with external law firms and counsel, including ensuring that appropriate terms of engagement are in place and overseeing billing processes. (E)
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Developing expertise in new and developing areas, both personally and in others. (E)
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Planning, overseeing, and administering an in-house legal budget. (E)
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Operating in a regulatory agency or non-departmental public body (NDPB) (D)
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Supporting company or organisation restructures, including mergers and acquisitions. (D)
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Advising in relation to complex and high-value commercial contracts, including drafting and negotiating. (D)
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Influencing and advising in relation to legislative change (D)
Technical
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A qualified lawyer with at least ten years’ post-qualification experience, with a minimum of two years’ experience gained within an in-house legal function. (E)
Behaviours
The Civil Service has defined a set of behaviours that, when demonstrated, are associated with job success. For this role you should demonstrate the following Civil Service Behaviours:
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Communicating and Influencing: Communicate purpose and direction with clarity, integrity and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses and opinions of others.
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Seeing the Bigger Picture: Understand how your role fits with and supports organisational objectives. Recognise the wider Civil Service priorities and ensure work is in the national interest.
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Leadership: Show pride and passion for public service. Create and engage others in delivering a shared vision. Value difference, diversity and inclusion, ensuring fairness and opportunity for all.
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Developing Self & Others: Focus on continuous learning and development for self, others and the organisation as a whole.
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Managing a Quality Service: Deliver service objectives with professional excellence, expertise and efficiency, taking account of diverse customer needs
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Delivering at Pace: Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive
Success profiles
During the application for this role, we will be using the new Civil Service Success Profiles.
You may find it helpful to read through Success Profiles online, where you can find various links which sets out the five elements of the Success profile: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles
