Senior Child Care Lawyer

This position is only open to current employees of Brent Council or Temporary Agency Workers currently working in Brent Council. Salary range: £58,461 - £65,181 p.a. inc. London weighting Contract: Permanent Hours of work: 36 hours per week Location: Civic centre and other locations from time to time An Excellent Opportunity… Brent is a tremendously vibrant London borough where the iconic arch of Wembley Stadium dominates the skyline. Spanning both inner and outer London, it is a borough of huge contrasts in terms of its economic, environmental, ethnic and social make up. Brent’s diversity is evident to all who visit our borough and our long history of ethnic and cultural diversity has created a place that is truly unique and valued by those who live and work here. The council is pursuing a far-reaching transformation agenda that better meets the needs of our community so it is an exciting time to join us. The Post In our Childcare Legal Team, we are looking for a Senior Child care Lawyer: To actively support the management of the department To provide high level and proactive expert legal advice on children social care law, including child protection, adoption law, the Children Act 1989 and other related social care law issues to the Council, its members and officers and to be a point of contact for members and senior officers on legal matters pertaining to these matters Allocation of work to appropriate members of staff Monitoring the quality of work undertaken by the team Managing a team of around 4 and ensuring adequate training and development The Person The successful Senior Child care Lawyer will possess: A current practising certificate (either as a Barrister, Solicitor or FCILEX (with litigation Practice rights) A can-do attitude with the confidence to lead a team Strong experience in all matters relating to housing law/Civil Litigation Ability to anticipate problems and solve them accordingly Must be dependable and self-reliant. Why join us? We know people achieve their best when they feed valued. At Brent, you’ll benefit from: Up to 33 days annual leave (depending on length of service) plus bank holidays Excellent pension with generous employer contributions (LGPS) Hybrid and flexible working options available for most roles Supportive family-friendly policies for parent, guardians, and carers Health and wellbeing support, including access to eye test support and a 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme Financial support such as education sessions, childcare deposit loans, and season ticket loans Travel perks including Zipcar access, affordable parking nearby, a Cycle to Work scheme, and great onsite facilities Learning and development opportunities to help you grow your career Access to My Brent Rewards with exclusive discounts on shopping, travel, leisure, and entertainment Closing date: 7 December 2025 (23:59) Additional Information If you are interested in applying for this job, please start by clicking the "Apply Now" button below. You must provide a supporting statement as part of your application that clearly shows how you meet the criteria on the Person Specification. We will accept a CV in support of your application, however, you should still provide a supporting statement. This position is only open to current employees of Brent Council or Temporary Agency Workers currently working in Brent Council. External candidates are not permitted to apply for internal only roles. Forwarding ‘internal only’ roles to external candidates may lead to disciplinary action being taken. Brent Council values the diversity of its community and aims to have a workforce that reflects this and therefore encourage applications from all sections of the community. We positively encourage all applicants to self-identify their characteristics in the diversity survey section in the application. We are committed to safer recruitment and safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Applicants should be aware that posts working with children, young people and vulnerable adults are subject to an Enhanced DBS check as well as other employment clearances. Brent has a positive approach to flexible working. As a disability confident employer Brent welcomes applications from people with all disabilities, including “non-visible” disabilities and mental health conditions. We will interview any disabled applicant who meets the essential criteria. If you require reasonable adjustments to be made to any part of the recruitment process due to your disability, please contact us on recruitment@brent.gov.uk Job Description