Assistant Director, Law and Governance (and Monitoring Officer)

Newcastle City Council; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in Newcastle upon Tyne is seeking an experienced Assistant Director to lead their Law and Governance functions, including oversight of elections and serving as the Monitoring Officer. The role requires strong leadership, a comprehensive understanding of governance frameworks, and collaboration with local legal teams to shape strategies for legal service provision. Candidates should possess change management skills and a commitment to ensuring compliance with statutory requirements. This position plays a crucial part in the council's Corporate Leadership Team.

Qualifications

• Strong leadership and change management skills required.
• Thorough understanding of local government role of Monitoring Officer needed.
• Experience with governance frameworks essential.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Law and Governance functions.
• Drive high profile elections and statutory functions.
• Coordinate with legal teams for service strategies.
• Ensure compliance with governance and improve assurance frameworks.

Skills

Leadership

Change management

Legal services understanding

Governance frameworks compliance

Job description

Role Overview

The council is seeking to appoint an Assistant Director to lead our Law and Governance functions, including elections, and to be the council’s Monitoring Officer.

Sitting on our Corporate Leadership Team, you will form a key part of the council’s Golden Triangle, bringing to the role a thorough understanding of the role of the Monitoring Officer in local government, how this interacts with the other statutory officers to ensure assurance, and the legislative and advisory framework for good governance (Government guidance on best value standards, LLG, CIPFA and Solace’s Code of Practice on Good Governance for Local Authority Statutory Officers, and the LGA’s Improvement and Assurance Framework).

Our work on assurance has been significant, with a review of our constitution and changes to our Annual Governance Statement implemented this year, following a review of our practice against the above assurance frameworks.

As well as carrying out the essential duties of our Monitoring Officer you will provide highly visible and dynamic leadership to our Law and Governance functions. We have recently been working with Lawyers in Local Government to understand how the organisation commissions and resources legal services, which will give you a clear evidence base and corporate leadership support for implementing a new vision for the service and the organisation. This will play to your strong leadership and change management skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide highly visible leadership to the Law and Governance functions and the Monitoring Officer duties.
• Lead the elections team in partnership with the Service Manager for Democratic Services, delivering high profile elections and other statutory functions essential to the democratic process.
• Coordinate with lawyers in Local Government to shape commissioning and resource strategies for legal services.
• Ensure compliance with governance frameworks and continuously improve assurance frameworks.

For an informal discussion contact Matt Wilton, Deputy Chief Executive.

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