Planning Lawyer

Leicester City Council; Leicester; Hybrid; GBP 44,000 - 56,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Local Government Pension Scheme

Flexible working

Generous annual leave

Job summary

Leicester City Council is seeking an experienced Qualified Lawyer specializing in Planning Law to support the Council’s Planning Department and attend Planning Committees. You will advise on governance, provide proactive, solutions-focused legal support, and deputise for senior staff as required.

The role offers flexible hybrid working between home and Leicester City Offices, with career progression through Grades 9–11 and a generous benefits package within the Local Government Pension Scheme.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of Planning Law and practice.
• Ability to work as part of a team.
• Strong communication skills and client relations.

Responsibilities

• Provide secure high‑quality legal services in planning law.
• Attend Planning Committees and advise on governance matters.
• Support the Planning Department and related public bodies.

Skills

Planning Law

Legal advice

Teamwork

Communication

Job description

Reference

REQ8959

Description

Full Time / 37 Hours Per Week / Permanent A welcome payment of £5000 may be offered to a suitable candidate with appropriate experience. (This will be paid following a successful 6 month probation period)

Are you a Qualified Lawyer who has experience in providing advice on planning matters? This is an exciting opportunity for a Qualified Lawyer to join our service. Working within a friendly and supportive team, you'll report directly to the Principal Lawyer and work collaboratively with other lawyers and external stakeholders. We offer flexible hybrid working with dedicated legal support, promoting a healthy work life balance. This is your chance to make a difference and join a professional and committed team of lawyers.

As a Qualified Lawyer with experience in Planning Law, you'll confidently and competently advise and support the planning functions of the Council, including the governance around the planning function and decision making, occasionally providing legal advice to the Council as developer. At Senior Lawyer level, you will also deputise for the Principal Lawyer and support junior members of the team with their development and training. Dealing primarily with cases within your area of specialism you'll develop your own skills and experience whilst working closely with other legal teams and areas.

This is a full-time, permanent post working 37 hours a week from Monday to Friday.

This is a career graded post (Grades 9-11). Appointment to a level will depend on the outcome of the selection process and experience of the successful candidate. Dependent on availability of work/vacancy at a higher level, progress will be by satisfactory performance, agreed at annual Appraisals and through on-going supervision.

Region

Central

Location

Hybrid working - Home and Leicester City Offices

Salary

GBP 44,253 - GBP 56,293 per year

Package

Total benefit value (includes pension contribution and full holiday entitlement): GBP 76,540

Contractual hours

37

Basis

Full time

What You’ll Be Doing

You’ll provide secure high-quality legal services, advise on all aspects of planning law and work closely with the Council’s Planning Department to support the Council’s functions. You’ll routinely attend and advise at Planning Committees. Using your expertise, you’ll provide solutions focused advice and support to the Council and other public bodies.

What You’ll Need

As a skilled lawyer, you’ll have knowledge of Planning Law and practice. With the ability to work as part of a team, you’ll ensure the provision of quality, client focussed and cost-effective legal services. Using strong communication skills, you’ll build and manage external relationships with clients carrying through assigned tasks and matters to conclusion. Pragmatic in your advice, talented, and proactive, you’ll work effectively with client departments to find solutions.

What We Can Offer You

As well as the satisfaction of helping to improve thousands of lives across Leicester, you can look forward to a work environment that encourages a healthy work/life balance. You’ll enjoy generous annual leave, membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme and the option of flexible working. We’ll also give you the chance to develop your skills and expertise with a variety of training and development opportunities. In addition, you can choose from several flexible benefits, including discounts on city buses and trains. For an illustrative value of your benefits package, take a look at our benefits calculator.

Join us

We’re committed to recruiting a diverse and highly-talented workforce as we continue to build a council that is fitting and representative of our great city. That’s why we’ve designed our recruitment process to put you at your ease, make you feel welcome and bring the best out of you. We’ll do all we can to make our recruitment process as fair as possible. To help you with your application, look at the ‘our approach to recruitment’ page.

Contact

For a chat about this post, please feel free to contact Zoe Iliffe, Principal Lawyer (Property, Highways & Planning) at [e-mail] or on 0116 454 2180 or Kevin Carter, Head of Law (Commercial, Property & Planning) at [e-mail] or on 0116 454 4197