Legal Officer

Staffordshire County Council; Stafford; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous holiday entitlement

Flexi time

Annual leave purchase scheme

Employee discounts

Local government pension scheme

Optional car lease scheme

Staff parking discount

Job summary

Staffordshire County Council’s Legal Services offers a rewarding role as a countryside and public rights of way paralegal. You will handle a varied caseload, develop expertise in Definitive Map Matters, and work within a supportive in-house team to deliver quality legal services.

The ideal candidate holds a CILEX Advanced Paralegal or equivalent, can work independently or with a team, communicates effectively, and demonstrates strong IT and organisational skills.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of countryside and public rights of way law.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to prioritise a varied workload.
• Strong IT skills.

Responsibilities

• Progressing Definitive Map Modification Applications to conclusion, including investigation, research, writing reports and presenting to a Panel of Members.
• Drafting and serving legal Orders and Notices, submissions to the Secretary of State, and attending public hearings and inquiries in relation to the same.
• Providing general legal advice on countryside and public rights of way matters including legal research.
• Adhering to the Legal Services Unit's LEXCEL quality standards.
• Assisting with drafting of Committee reports to more junior team members and checking the same.

Skills

Countryside law

Public rights of way law

Independent worker

Communication skills

Interpersonal skills

IT skills

Education

CILEX Advanced Paralegal

Job description

Staffordshire County Council is a modern, progressive and forward-thinking authority that is ambitious and empowers its employees to be courageous and innovative in their approach.

Staffordshire Legal Services is a large in-house corporate legal team, consisting of lawyers, trainees and support staff, with a key focus on staff training, retention and progression. The service supports the County Council in the delivery of its objectives by providing quality services to support every single function in the Council including Environment and Countryside, as well as to a wide range of external clients.

The successful candidate will undertake a rewarding varied caseload of countryside and public rights of way related matters so previous experience of these specialisms is essential, within either public sector or private practice.

Benefits

• generous holiday entitlement
• flexi time
• annual leave purchase scheme
• employee discounts
• local government pension scheme
• optional car lease scheme
• a staff parking discount scheme

We understand the importance of a work-life balance and currently offer remote working with attendance at our Stafford office on flexible patterns and in accordance with business need. We are also happy to consider requests for part-time working.

Main Responsibilities

Responsibilities will include:

• progressing Definitive Map Modification Applications to conclusion, including investigation, research, writing reports and presenting to a Panel of Members.
• drafting and serving legal Orders and Notices, submissions to the Secretary of State, and attending public hearings and inquiries in relation to the same.
• providing general legal advice on countryside and public rights of way matters including legal research.
• adhering to the Legal Services Unit's LEXCEL quality standards.
• such other duties as may reasonably be required including providing assistance with the drafting of Committee reports to more junior members of the team, and checking the same.

The Ideal Candidate

We are looking for a CILEX Advanced Paralegal, or equivalent, with:

• knowledge of the law relating to countryside and public rights of way
• ability to work independently and as part of a team
• strong communication and interpersonal skills
• excellent organisational skills with the ability to prioritise a varied workload.
• Strong I.T skills

Interviews will be held during the week commencing 28th September 2026.

Our Recruitment Process

We anonymise applications during shortlisting to ensure only relevant information is considered.

Please note: The minimum criteria in the ideal candidate section detailed above will be used if you are applying under one of our Interview Guarantee Schemes.

About Staffordshire County Council

We are no ordinary county council:

Our values

The core of who we are as an organisation. Just like we all have personal values that shape our thoughts and behaviour, organisational values drive how we think and act collectively.

Our values were created and shaped by colleague feedback and national best practice and they sit at the heart of People Strategy:

We have a real sense of community spirit that brings our people together. This feeling of belonging means we are all connected to what we do and take pride in the difference we make every day for Staffordshire people. We are ambitious and our sights are set firmly on a better future.

We look forward and race ahead - that goes for your career too.

Our benefits

We recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive working environment where employees can achieve their full potential and achieve a healthy work‑life balance.

In addition to your salary, as a member of staff, you will have access to Our rewards and benefits - Careers at Staffordshire

Our recruitment process

As an Authority we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Staffordshire County Council is an equal opportunities organisation and Disability Confident employer.

We encourage applications from all background and communities

As part of our commitment as a Disability Confident employer, a Gold Award Armed Forces employer and our commitment to supporting care leavers - we offer a guaranteed interview as long as yourapplication meets the minimum criteria for the post.