Governance Lawyer - Braintree District Council

Essex County Council; Braintree; On-site; GBP 48,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional governance body in Braintree is seeking a Governance Lawyer to manage governance systems and provide legal advice to council members and officers. The ideal candidate will have a qualification in law and experience in local government law. This role offers benefits including flexible working and a local government pension scheme.

Benefits

Flexible working

Free parking

Local government pension scheme

Learning and development opportunities

Staff recognition schemes

Health and wellbeing programme with gym discounts

Qualifications

• Extensive experience advising on good governance arrangements and public law principles.
• Ability to present clear and credible advice to various audiences.
• Experience in managing complaints and local government law.

Responsibilities

• Manage systems of good governance for the Council.
• Provide legal advice to members and officers on statutory functions.
• Develop training processes for compliance and governance.
• Oversee reporting for key meetings and manage decision logs.

Skills

Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Ability to analyse complex information

Proven success in building effective relationships

Resilience and tenacity

Strategic thinking and proactive problem solving

Education

Qualified Solicitor/Barrister or CILEX

Job description

Overview

Location: Braintree, Essex
Salary: £48,945 to £53,082 per annum pro rata
Job Type: Full time, permanent
Closing date: Midnight on Thursday 9th October

Essex County Council (ECC) are delighted to be supporting Braintree Council to recruit this Governance Lawyer. To apply for this role please visit https://www.braintree.gov.uk/join-our-team. Please DO NOT click the Apply button on the left.

The Opportunity: We have an exciting opportunity for a Governance Lawyer to join our team.

Responsibilities

• To manage and maintain systems of good governance which ensure that the Council's responsibilities and decision-making processes are effectively managed and decisions are made in a lawful, clear and transparent manner, in accordance with the Council's constitution.
• Provide expert advice on behalf of the Monitoring Officer, to Members and Officers in relation to the discharge of their statutory functions.
• Lead on providing legal advice in response to queries raised by officers or councillors, particularly governance advice, and write and provide legal comments on reports to Cabinet, Cabinet Members, Council Committees and Chief Officers.
• Develop and deliver training and processes to support the organisation in compliance and governance through an approach that is both supportive and proactive.
• Devising and implementing new or updated methods, forms and processes as required by new legislation or guidance, revised council policy or as a result of other changes occurring.
• Take a leadership role in overseeing the production of reporting packs for key meetings including Full Council and Cabinet, ensuring quality of output and engagement by key report authors through the process.
• Provide support to the Monitoring Officer in the management of complaints received through the Code of Conduct Complaints process, including undertaking investigations into complaints where appropriate and liaison with the Council's Independent Person.
• Provide support and guidance to team members to manage the scrutiny process.
• Manage and maintain a decision and actions log arising from Council and Cabinet meetings, and ensure that all actions are assigned and completed in a timely manner.
• Attend meetings of the Council as required to provide legal and governance advice.
• Participate in the strategic management of the Governance and Legal department.
• This role is also eligible for appointment as a Deputy Monitoring Officer.

About you / Qualifications

• Qualified Solicitor/Barrister or CILEX.
• Extensive experience advising Members and Officers on good governance arrangements, with a detailed, practical understanding of public law principles, local government law, governance and constitutional issues.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to analyse complex information and present advice, reports and accounts clearly and credibly to a variety of audiences.
• Proven success in building and sustaining effective relationships, with resilience, tenacity and the ability to think strategically and proactively, reassess tasks and devise solutions to meet changing priorities and tight deadlines.

Benefits

• Flexible working
• Free parking
• Local government pension scheme
• Learning and development for all staff
• Staff recognition schemes
• Extensive health and wellbeing programme including discounted gym membership.