top of page

Home  >  Vacancies  > Contracts and Procurement Solicitor

Contracts and Procurement Solicitor

Grade 6 - £45,091 - £50,269 per annum

Part-time role - 3-4 days a week

The Job

Main Purpose of the Role​

  • Contracts and Procurement Specialist who will provide legal advice, representation, and assistance across the Council to Members and staff colleagues as well as at public meetings where required.

  • Understand the role of Legal Services and contribute to the delivery of the Legal Team's Service Plan and the Council's Corporate Plan.

  • Contribute to the delivery of a high quality and cost-effective legal service.

​​

Generic Accountabilities of the Role​

  • Be a trusted adviser to Members and colleagues in all specialist knowledge areas, and at all levels of the organisation.

  • Proactively manage an ongoing legal caseload, maintaining accurate and organised records of contracts, correspondence and legal documents.

  • Undertake continuing professional development as required and maintain an up-to-date knowledge of all relevant legislation, guidance, and case law.

  • Ensure good governance.

  • Work with and support other members of the legal and governance team.

  • Exhibit the highest professional work standards and a capacity to develop skills and knowledge.

  • Attend statutory meetings as required.

​

​

Specific Accountabilities of the Role

Trusted adviser to all Officers on a wide range of contract and procurement matters including:​

  • Drafting, reviewing and negotiating a variety of contracts, including but not limited to Service Level Agreements, Funding Agreements, Inter-Authority Agreements, JCT and NEC construction contracts and Framework Agreements, to ensure they meet legal regulatory and Council policy/interests, obtain best value and quality for the Council and its residents.

  • Ensuring contracts and procurement activities and processes adhere to relevant laws, regulations and Council policy/interests, assessing risk and developing strategies to mitigate risk.

  • Providing legal guidance during the procurement process, helping officers to make informed decisions and avoid legal pitfalls.

  • Staying up-to-date on relevant laws and regulations and conducting legal research to provide accurate advice and guidance to officers.

  • Maintaining effective working relationships with everyone in the Legal Services team, across the Council at varying levels of seniority, the Council’s Shared Procurement Service, and with other contracts and procurement solicitors in other collaborative local authorities.

  • Working with the Council’s Data Protection Officer to ensure the correct data protection mitigations and provisions are contained within contract documentation.

  • Assisting in provision of advice on subsidy control.

​

​

Professional and Personal Attributes

  • Fully qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive / Relevant professional qualification (Essential)

  • Membership of other relevant professional bodies (Desirable)

  • Working knowledge of managing matters in the area of specialism (Essential)

  • Working knowledge of managing matters in the area of specialism in a local government context (Desirable)

  • Knowledge of the local government statutory framework and relevant current and emerging legislation, guidance, and best practice (Desirable)

  • Working within a legal team or practice (Essential)

  • Working within a local government legal team (Desirable)

  • Advising on general public law and constitutional matters (Desirable)

  • Attending and addressing Committees in the area of specialism (Desirable)

  • Relevant court procedures (Desirable)

  • Excellent Verbal and written communication (Essential)

  • Scrutiny of new legislation (Essential)

  • Ability to work on own initiative, prioritise and manage workload within set deadlines (Essential)

  • Understand modern digital approaches to improve service delivery (Essential)

  • Understanding of the political nature of local government and the democratic process (Desirable)

  • Working in a political environment and alongside elected Members (Desirable)

Qualifications Educational and Professional

Knowledge

Experience

Business Skills

Political Skills

Other

  • Able to collaborate and communicate openly and be approachable and fair (Essential)

  • Ambitious, creative, and open-minded (Essential)

  • High level of personal integrity (Essential)

  • Capacity and desire to develop relevant skills and knowledge (Essential)

  • Flexible in working arrangements to respond to needs of the business (Essential)

  • Available to attend out of hours meetings as necessary (Essential)

Personal Behaviours

The above profile is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employees in this role. It is not meant to be a detailed list of all duties and responsibilities which may be required. It will be supplemented and further defined by objectives set at appropriate times, which will be developed in conjunction with the post holder. It will be subject to regular review and the Council reserves the right to amend or add to the accountabilities listed.


The grade for this post is determined by Job Evaluation.

​

​

bottom of page