Commercial Lawyer | Preston

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

Job summary

Lancashire County Council is seeking a Commercial & Procurement lawyer to support the Legal team in delivering high-value, complex matters across a wide range of projects. The role encompasses drafting and negotiating contracts, advising on procurement, and working on tenders.

The successful candidate will advise on the council’s Digital Service and academy conversions, with a focus on timely delivery and adherence to constitutional and procurement requirements.

Qualifications

• Demonstrable commercial background with breadth and depth of experience.
• Experience of local authority legal work with understanding of constitution and procurement rules.
• We welcome lawyers with commercial experience from any setting and strong work ethic.

Responsibilities

• Provide general commercial legal advice and procurement support for the council.
• Draft and negotiate contracts and procurement documents.
• Advise on tenders and academy conversions, collaborating with Property and Assets teams.

Skills

Commercial awareness

Local authority experience

Professional attitude

Education

Admission as Solicitor/Barrister/Chartered Legal Exec

Job description

Description

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. 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.

Salary

£47,665 - £53,051 per annum | Permanent | 37 hours per week | Commercial & Procurement Team

Please note that we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role

Role

The role will be primarily a general commercial lawyer post, however the successful applicant will also have the opportunity to advise in the following service areas:

• the council's Digital Service on a range of contract, commercial and procurement matters, including the procurement of hardware and software, software licences and the use of third-party frameworks
• Academy conversions. This involves the drafting and negotiating of Commercial Transfer Agreements, working closely with the council's Legal Property and Assets teams to ensure that academy conversions are completed on time.

We are a friendly, talented and collaborative team who support each other to make a meaningful contribution to the council's vision – making Lancashire the best place to live, work and prosper. Commercial Lawyers enjoy a high level of responsibility and hands-on experience of stimulating, challenging work, whilst benefiting from an inclusive, supportive and flexible working environment.

All successful applicants will need to have been admitted as a Solicitor, be a practising 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.

Council 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.

Closing Date: 11/10/2026

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. However, 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. By joining us now, you'll play an important role in shaping the future of local government and helping to build a strong new organisation that will serve residents for years to come.