Solicitor (Child Care)

Organisation: Leicestershire County Council Work Location: County Hall, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8RA Salary: £41,259 - £55,602 per annum (pro rata for part-time) plus a10% market supplement payment (terms and conditions apply) Working Hours: 37 Hours Per Week Contract Type: Permanent Closing Date: 1st November 2026 Interview Date(s): TBC   We have a permanent full-time vacancy for an experienced child care lawyer with full advocacy and conduct of litigation practice rights. Working for Leicestershire County Council as a child care lawyer –  * positive working relationships with client department, the local Courts, CAFCASS and private practice    * professional culture of proactive advice, planned applications and collaboration.   * each lawyer having a nominated paralegal to give lawyers time and space for quality advice/drafting and preparation for court   * high quality supervision and support from management team (two team leaders and an Assistant Head of Law all very experienced in this area of law)    * job satisfaction – mentoring paralegals and training social workers  * interesting range of legal work including the law relating to Deprivation of Liberty and Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children  What’s not to like?!  We look forward to receiving your application. About the Role As a Solicitor in the Child Care Team, you will provide an efficient and effective legal advisory service to the Children and Family Services Department and other departments when required. To support you to undertake your role, you will have: • An effective IT system to enable flexible and efficient working away from the office. • An experienced and highly motivated paralegal to provide dedicated case work support. • The opportunity to focus on quality written and verbal advice work. • Space and time to undertake advocacy where appropriate (we encourage advocacy but are not an in-house advocacy team). • High quality supervision and support from an experienced management team (two Team Leaders and an Assistant Head of Law, all very experienced in this area of law). In addition to the above, you will also have the opportunity to gain experience in niche areas, such as Deprivation of Liberty, the law relating to Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children and Public Law and to contribute to the training of social workers and other professionals. Team working is very important to us, and we encourage our solicitors to work with colleagues in a positive and supportive way that promotes learning and development. In addition to supervising paralegals and support staff, you will therefore be expected to provide mentoring, advice, and informal supervision to colleagues to enhance learning, where appropriate. About You To apply for this post, you must be able to evidence in your application how you meet the following criteria: • Be qualified as an admitted Solicitor, Barrister or Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives with full advocacy and conduct of litigation practice rights. • Have knowledge of the Children Act 1989, Adoption & Children Act 2002, the Public Law Outline and the Family Procedure Rules 2010. • Be able to communicate effectively with colleagues, customers, and internal and external stakeholders to persuade and influence appropriate outcomes. • Be able to assimilate information rapidly and present effective solutions and appropriate advice and guidance in a timely manner. • Have excellent organisation and prioritisation skills, IT skills, and written communication skills to enable the drafting of legal documents. • Be able to work accurately under pressure with minimum supervision. • Be a team player. In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values [https://eism.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/lcc/pages/1004] and to delivering accessible and inclusive services which meet the needs of all of our residents.  You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of these commitments as part of the selection process. Reasonable adjustments will be considered for applicants with a disability. We are a Disability Confident Employer [https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/disability-confident-campaign]. Interested in Flexible Working? We are open to discussions about flexible working, which may include part time working, job sharing, term-time working, flexible start and finish times, and hybrid working, depending on the requirements of the role and the service. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below. For more information or an informal discussion, please contact: Kathryn Reeves Telephone: 0116 3056008 Email: kathryn.reeves@leics.gov.uk [kathryn.reeves@leics.gov.uk]  or  Clare Bianchina Telephone: 0116 3051504 Email: clare.bianchina@leics.gov.uk [clare.bianchina@leics.gov.uk]  How to Apply At Leicestershire County Council we’re looking for top talent from all walks of life. Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, and whatever your background - we care about what you bring to our organisation, not just what’s on your CV. That’s why we’ve designed a recruitment process that’s fair, accessible, and focused on potential. And with benefits that support people at every age and stage of life, we make sure you can thrive - both personally and professionally. If you share our passion to make a difference for the people of Leicestershire, we’d love to hear from you. Click the apply button to submit your application, ensuring that you upload a supporting statement that explains how you meet the criteria listed in the ‘About You’ section above. Without this information, we won’t be able to assess your suitability for the role, and your application will be rejected. For tips on how to write your statement, see the How to Apply [https://eism.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/lcc/pages/1001] section on our career site. We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible. If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post or you want to request an application pack in an alternative format, please contact our Employee Service Centre by telephoning 0300 3030222 (select option 2) or raising a ticket via our online portal: https://emss.org.uk/support [https://emss.org.uk/support]. By applying for this post, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. [https://eism.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/lcc/pages/1006] About Leicestershire County Council At Leicestershire County Council, we're committed to making a real difference in people's lives. Our aim is to work with communities and partners to deliver public services that make Leicestershire the best possible place to live and work for everyone.  Our employees play a key role in supporting this goal and helping us deliver the vital services we provide to the people of Leicestershire. Whether you're starting your career or looking for your next challenge, you'll find a place with us where your ideas are valued, and your work has purpose. For further information on what it’s like to work for us and the benefits we offer, please refer to the following: Our Recruitment Process [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/jobs-and-volunteering/working-for-the-council/the-application-process] Our Organisational Values [https://eism.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX/pages/1004] Our Employee Benefits [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/jobs-and-volunteering/working-for-the-council/employee-benefits] Working for Us [https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/jobs-and-volunteering/working-for-the-council/an-inclusive-workplace]