Education Lawyer

VWV; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A top-ranked law firm in Greater London seeks an experienced Education Lawyer specialized in regulatory compliance and independent school matters. The role involves advising on contentious and non-contentious issues such as admissions, safeguarding, and critical incident management with a focus on maintaining school reputation. The firm embraces a hybrid working model, allowing for both office and remote work, fostering a supportive and engaging culture among employees.

Qualifications

• Experience in both contentious and non-contentious legal advice related to independent schools.
• Ability to manage complaint handling and tribunal work efficiently.
• Capable of guiding schools through inspections and regulatory compliance.

Responsibilities

• Advise on admissions and exclusions, student behavior, and safeguarding matters.
• Supervise the work of the legal team and implement firm strategy.
• Manage reputation protection services for independent schools.

Skills

Experience in regulatory compliance

Advising independent schools

Handling sensitive cases

Knowledge of special educational needs

Critical incident management

Education

Qualified solicitor or associate level

Job description

Education Lawyer

An exceptional role for an education lawyer at a top-ranked practice! Here at VWV, we're committed to advising and representing education providers, and this role sees us looking to expand our thriving and profitable regulatory compliance practice with a bright and pragmatic lawyer, most likely at around the solicitor or associatelevel. With regulatory compliance work being "core" to our firm's success, this is a chance to work at the very "engine" of the firm.

About us

We're a Top 100, full-service UK law firm with just over 500 employees. With 4 offices in London, Watford, Bristol and Birmingham, you'll be struck by our close-knit and friendly culture. We believe in integrity and authenticity - in each one of us being ourselves, both in our interactions with each other and with our clients. With a reputation not just for the quality of our work, but also for the qualities of our people, we strive to recruit individuals who are proactive and passionate about what they do and who are able to demonstrate humour and humility in equal measure.

Our Regulatory Compliance practice

Here at VWV,we have a specialist regulatory compliance team - a team of lawyers who guide our clients, in particular education and health and social care providers, through their regulatory frameworks and help to manage the legal challenges that they face. Many of our clients are nationally-renowned providers and much of our work is driven by legal and political developments in our key sectors, which makes for a constantly evolving and dynamic practice.

Clients seek our services knowing that our specialist sector knowledge, coupled with our high service level standards and range of pricing options, set us apart. Our work is recognised in the legal directories (we are tier 1 for our practice with a number of leading individuals in the field) and by the sector press / associations.

Headed by Partner, , this team comprises 5 partners, 21 lawyers and 4 support colleagues.

The role

If you're an experienced education lawyer, specialising in parent and student matters as well as compliance with regulatory frameworks specific to independent schools, this opportunity could be for you. Ideally, you will have broad expertise across both contentious and non-contentious aspects of the work and will be experienced in advising independent schools, school groups, and governing bodies on a wide range of legal issues.

Working closely with our team lead for independent school practice, you'll play a key role in supervising the work of the team and helping to deliver our strategy in this dynamic and evolving sector. Your caseload will likely include advising on admissions and exclusions (including appeals), managing student behaviour and disciplinary issues, safeguarding, special educational needs (SEN) and equality matters, handling complaints and claims (including tribunal work), and guiding schools through inspections and regulatory compliance.

You will also provide critical incident management and reputation protection services—key areas for independent schools. Familiarity with issues such as fee disputes, parental complaints, and safeguarding obligations unique to the independent sector would be highly valuable. Experience in handling sensitive cases discreetly and efficiently, with a focus on preserving school reputation, is essential.

At a time of political and regulatory change, this role offers a unique opportunity to support independent schools as they navigate evolving challenges and continue to thrive.

Where will I be working?

As regards location, we're open-minded. We have a truly unique and engaging culture that we hold dear : we work hard but we also love to have fun and we recognise that it's the social interaction betweenus that really shapes our culture. The team and firm work to a hybrid model of office and remote working, and we would ideally like you to be based from one of our office locations for at least part of each week. In this way, you'll benefit first-hand from our warm and friendly culture, and facilitate cross referral opportunities. We are of course happy to discuss any specific requirements of hybrid working with candidates on an individual basis.

How to apply?