Senior Crown Prosecutor

Page Personnel; Manchester; On-site; GBP 59,000 - 66,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Civil Service pension

25 days leave

Privilege day (King's birthday)

Maternity/paternity leave

Flexible working

Cycle2Work

Learning & development

Job summary

The Crown Prosecution Service in Manchester is seeking a Senior Crown Prosecutor to handle complex cases across magistrates' courts, Crown Court, and RASSO teams. You will review evidence, provide charging advice, and advocate in court as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

This role includes structured induction and opportunities to progress to legal manager or crown advocate, with a strong emphasis on public service and delivering justice.

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with criminal law experience
• Commitment to public service and CPS values
• Focus on personal development and career progression

Responsibilities

• Advise police and investigators on casework and evidence for offences
• Review case files and charging decisions for magistrates' and Crown Court
• Advocate in magistrates' courts on serious and sensitive cases
• Explain decisions clearly to stakeholders including magistrates and police
• Collaborate in a multi-skilled team and stay updated on criminal offences

Skills

Criminal law experience

Public service commitment

Career progression focus

Education

Qualified solicitor or barrister

Law degree

Common Professional Examination

Graduate Diploma in Law

Legal Practice Course / SQE

CILEx qualification (Advocate/Litigator)

Job description

• Work on some of the most complex and challenging cases

About Our Client

The Crown Prosecution Service, the independent body in England and Wales that prosecutes criminal cases investigated by the police, deciding charges, preparing cases, and presenting them in court while supporting victims.

Job Description

As a senior crown prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service, you work on some of the most complex and challenging cases - from fraud and firearms offences to public order and corporate manslaughter.Senior crown prosecutors are highly trained, experienced lawyers with excellent people skills and a passion for delivering justice. This role is largely office and/or court based. You're responsible for reviewing evidence and making decisions on whether a case should be prosecuted - in line with our Code for Crown Prosecutors. You're based in one of three units - magistrates' court, Crown Court or rape and serious sexual offences - depending on your experience level.You represent the Crown Prosecution Service on the frontline, collaborating closely with colleagues and other criminal justice agencies, including the police and judiciary. You play a vital role in maintaining public confidence in our work. You benefit from a structured induction four-month training plan and opportunities to shadow colleagues across the organisation. Once you gain further experience, you have options to progress into legal manager and crown advocate roles.Your roles and responsibilities:

• To advise police and other investigators on casework and evidence requirements for a wide range of offences
• To review case files and charging decisions, providing legal advice and making the final decision, based on evidence, on whether prosecutions should proceed on cases for the magistrates' and Crown Court
• To undertake advocacy in relation to serious and sensitive cases in the magistrates' courts including Youth Courts, not guilty anticipated plea court lists, and multi-day trials
• To explain our decisions clearly to stakeholders including magistrates, counsel, victims, witnesses and the police
• To work effectively as part of a multi-skilled team and maintain up-to-date knowledge of criminal offences

The prosecution teams:Each Crown Prosecution Service area has a Crown Court, magistrates' court, and a rape and serious sexual offences (RASSO) team. As a senior crown prosecutor, you're expected to be able to work in any of these teams although we do take into account your experience and, where possible, your personal preference before placing you in a team. Whichever team you join, you're supported with a detailed training and induction plan to cover your first four months with the Crown Prosecution Service.Working in our Crown Court team, you have a personal caseload of serious casework. You give charging advice to the police on cases to be heard in the Crown Court, working with our paralegal officers and with counsel to prepare cases for court.In our magistrates' court team, you are an advocate dealing with the full range of courts including trial courts. You have a personal caseload, giving pre-charge advice to the police on magistrates' court cases and you prepare cases for court. You may work on a specialist team such as a domestic abuse or youth team.In our RASSO team, you have a personal caseload comprising rape and serious sexual offences. You give charging and early indicative advice to the police on RASSO cases, working with our paralegal staff and counsel to prepare cases for court.

The Successful Applicant

Person specification

• You must be a qualified lawyer with criminal law experience
• You must demonstrate your commitment to public service, making a difference to the communities we serve and our Crown Prosecution Service values
• You're focused on personal development and career progression

QualificationsLegally qualified: You must be a qualified solicitor or barrister. You must be able to obtain a valid Practising Certificate for England and Wales by 16 March 2026.Academic: You must have a law degree, Common Professional Examination and/or Graduate Diploma in Law.Professional: You must have completed a Legal Practice Course, Solicitors Qualifying Exam or Bar Professional Training Course and the relevant pupillage and training contract - or have received full exemption from the relevant professional regulatory body, either the Solicitors Regulation Authority or the Bar Standards Board.orCILEx: You must be a Fellow of CILEx and a CILEx Advocate/Litigator holding all three advocacy certificates providing you with a 'general qualification' within the meaning of s.71 (3) (c) Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. You must have a right of audience in relation to any class of proceedings in any part of the Senior Courts, or all proceedings in county courts or magistrates' courts in order to meet the requirements for a Crown Prosecutor specified by section 1 Prosecution of Offences Act 1985. If you don't hold this CILEx qualification, you're not eligible to apply for this vacancy. If you're unsure whether you have qualified through CILEx, contact us to establish your eligibility for this role.If you apply and are found not to possess any of the above, any offer of employment will be withdrawn, or contract terminated.Equivalent qualifications won't be accepted. If you're unsure about your eligibility please contactYou must be a fully qualified solicitor or barrister by 16 March 2026. If successful, we must receive your practising certificate as soon as possible. We will not be able to progress pre-employment checks until the practising certificate has been received, and a deadline for this may be set in line with business need. If you're able to meet these requirements by this date, you're eligible to apply.Fraud checkThe Crown Prosecution Service provides a Fair Processing Notice to all new applicants after they've been successful at interview. These candidates are informed that, as one aspect of pre-employment screening, their personal details - name, National Insurance number and date of birth - are checked against the Internal Fraud Database. Anyone included on the database is refused employment unless they can demonstrate exceptional circumstances.The Crown Prosecution Service, on behalf of the vacancy holder, informs applicants when they are refused employment because they're included in the Internal Fraud Database.SecuritySuccessful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete checks.Nationality requirementsThis job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

What's on Offer

Salary between £58,525 and £65,650, dependent on the level of experience.Other benefits include:

• a Civil Service contributory pension of up to 28.9%
• 25 days' leave, increasing to 30 days after 5 years
• an extra privilege day to mark the King's birthday
• competitive maternity, paternity and parental leave
• flexible working and a family-friendly approach to work
• a Cycle2Work scheme, employee savings
• a range of learning and development activities, an individual learning account, and central and local development opportunities.

Senior Crown Prosecutor Manchester, England