Senior Social Services Lawyer in London

Senior Children’s Social Care Lawyer

PO7: starting salary £59,722 per annum rising in annual increments to £62,922 per annum including Inner London Weighing, plus £5000 market supplement

In addition to the salary,we also offer legally qualified new starters a £5,000 welcome bonus which is payable 50% after 6 months and 50% after 12 months in the role.

Hybrid working

Anexciting opportunity has arisen in the Council’slegal department for an Senior Children’s Social Care Lawyerto join our dynamic and specialist child litigation team which offers expert legal advice and support to the Council in all aspects of child protection and welfare law.

We are looking for a qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives with management experience, ideally from within the public sector to join our expanding team of experienced professionals and play a vital role in helping to deliver focused, high-quality advice and representation.

This is a varied role, and the successful candidate will be expected to manage a small but busy and challenging caseload whilst supporting the Principal Children’s Social Care Lawyer in the operational management of this specialist legal team. This includes the management, supervision and development of lawyers and paralegals.

• You will need to be enthusiastic, highly organised, proactive, flexible, able to work under pressure, manage competing deadlines and work as part of a teamand on your own initiative. We are looking for individuals with a real commitment to the job.

• You will be responsible for ensuring the Council receives cost effective high quality, accurate, strategic, solutions focused legal advice and representation in the areas of childcare law, local government law and such other areas as are allocated from time to time .

• You will support the Principal Social Care Lawyer in meeting operational requirements, service level agreements and performance targets .

• You willbuild and maintain excellent client relations acting as a role model to achieve service and council wide objectives.

• You will have highly competent legal skills and you will be able to deputise effectively for the Principal when required.

• You will work within a friendly, supportive, collaborative team environment where your professional development will be nurtured and appreciated.

This post requires a qualified solicitor, barrister, or CILEx with a current practising certificate and experience of working in childcare/child litigation and managing teams.

This post is subject to a Disclosure Application to the Disclosure and Barring Service. Successful candidates will be asked to apply for an Enhanced Certificate from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Further information about the DBS can be found at .

For detailed qualifications and requirements, please review the job description and person specification in hyperlink below:

Job Description and Person Specification

Contact Information:

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Ellie Rae at

How to Apply:

If you\'re interested in this opportunity, click on the apply button and complete an online application.

In your supporting statement, please clearly demonstrate how you meet the shortlist criteria marked with an \'A\' at shortlist stage. We operate an anonymised application process, so be sure to remove personal details when uploading your CV or personal statement.

Recruitment Timelines:

Advert close date: 11:59pm on 25 August 2025.

Shortlisting: 26 August 2025.

Interviews will be held between 1 &3 September 2025.

Other Benefits:

We believe in rewarding our staff. When you join us, you\'ll gain access to a range of benefits, including:

• Participation in our 5 Staff Networks: Black, Asian, and Multi-Ethnic, LGBTQ+, Disability, Young Professionals, and Women\'s.
• Generous annual leave entitlement starting from 27 days, increasing to up to 35 days depending on length of service.
• Membership in the Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Hybrid Working.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Occupational Sick Pay based on length of service.
• Discounts at local restaurants.
• Discount at our Active Lambeth Gyms.
• Learning and Development opportunities, including Apprenticeships.
• Cycle to Work Scheme.
• Secure Bike Storage facilities at our Town Hall and Civic Centre.
• Trade Union Membership.

At Lambeth, we are dedicated to providing quality services and equal opportunities for all. We are committed to safer recruitment and are proud to be a Stonewall diversity champion, a Living Wage Employer, and to guarantee interviews for all disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria of the role. For a full list of our accreditations, please click here .