Commercial Lawyer | Preston

Lancashire County Council; Brighton; Hybrid; GBP 48,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire County Council is seeking a qualified solicitor, barrister, or chartered legal executive to join the Commercial & Procurement Team in a hybrid role based in Preston. The successful candidate will draft and amend contracts, advise on procurement matters, and negotiate with external partners.

The position offers a permanent contract, 37 hours per week, with a salary of 47,665 to 53,051 per annum, and a flexible working arrangement including home working.

Qualifications

• Experience with drafting and amending contracts and procurement documents.

Responsibilities

• The role involves drafting and amending contracts and procurement documents, negotiating with third parties, and advising on tenders.

Skills

Commercial awareness

Contract drafting

Negotiation

Education

Solicitor/Barrister/Chartered Legal Executive

Job description

Salary and Contract

Salary 47,665

53,051 per annum| Permanent | 37 hours per week | Commercial & Procurement Team

Location

County Hall, Preston. Employees work on a hybrid basis. The post is based at County Hall, Preston, but employees have the ability and opportunity to work from home.

About Lancashire

Lancashire is the fourth largest local authority in England and spans twelve districts that cover a huge geographic area and a range of communities, both urban and rural. We deliver a wide range of services to the 1.2 million people who live here.

Role Overview

The Lancashire's Legal (Commercial & Procurement) team supports the delivery of those services through the provision of solutions-focused commercial legal advice, on a diverse range of high value and complex matters. The work includes drafting and amending contracts and other legal and procurement documents, negotiating with third parties, collaborating with other public and private sector partners and advising on tenders. We advise on a broad range of projects including Redefining Lancashire economic development work, highways, infrastructure, insourcing and outsourcing of council functions and the council's commercialisation agenda. The role involves advising on the application of the council's constitution, relevant procurement legislation, subsidy control, grant funding and a variety of other commercial matters, with the opportunity to work on high value and strategic projects.

Qualifications and Requirements

All successful applicants will need to have been admitted as a Solicitor, be a practicing Barrister or a Chartered Legal Executive.

Desirable requirements: Demonstrable commercial background, with credit given for the breadth and depth of experience that a candidate can demonstrate. Experience of local authority legal work with an appreciation of the requirements of adhering to our constitution and the relevant procurement legislation. We will consider lawyers with commercial experience from any setting as well as newly qualified lawyers who can demonstrate a strong work ethic and professional attitude.

Benefits

The successful candidate will have access to a generous benefits package, set out in more detail here - and at

Additional Information

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications.

Local Government Reorganisation: The Government has confirmed that local government across Lancashire will be reorganised, with the current 15 councils being replaced by four new unitary councils covering North, South, East and West Lancashire from April 2028. If you are successful in your application, you will initially join Lancashire County Council. As part of the planned transition, your employment will transfer to one of the new unitary councils from April 2028, subject to the implementation of the reorganisation and relevant employment legislation. Throughout this period, our focus remains on delivering excellent services to our communities.

Closing Date

11/10/2026

Contact

For an informal discussion, please contact Ross Hudson on ( / email