Legal Officer

We are looking for an experienced legal officer to join our small but busy council legal team. The role would suit a solicitor, Legal Executive or experienced paralegal. Local government experience is not needed. However, what is needed is significant practical experience of dealing with legal matters. You will ideally have hands-on experience in commercial property work and be able to deal with straightforward matters such as lease renewals, purchases and sales and licences etc with a minimum of supervision. Experience in other types of commercial matters such as contracts will be an advantage.

Requirements

• Qualifying Law Degree or equivalent vocational legal experience.

Why work for us?

Newcastle-under-Lyme is a borough with big ambitions. We’ve already started our transformation, however, we still need to find better ways of doing things because we are determined to do the very best we can for our communities. If our vision is to be the best, then we need the best people working for us. Our people are at the heart of what we do and have the freedom to innovate, grow and develop. We recruit people who share our vision and values; people who have the drive to deliver our ambitious Council plan.

Our historic borough is a place of marked contrasts. We are the home of a world-class University at Keele, a leading light known internationally for its research and sustainability record, which stands side by side with former mining communities including some which register amongst the most deprived areas in the country. Our Borough is also a mixture of urban centres, affected by some of the same social issues facing our neighbouring city, Stoke-on-Trent, but also outstanding rural landscapes in our less populated villages. Our plans and priorities aim to address the needs of all our communities.

Our People Offer

We reward our people with a competitive range of benefits including:

• Access to the local government pension scheme
• Minimum 24 days annual leave plus 5 extra days after 5 years' service
• Flexible working options and family-friendly policies
• Local and national high street discounts
• Free car parking
• Wellbeing support including £12.50 per month Jubilee2 membership
• Green travel scheme including cycle to work and electric car salary sacrifice
• Free employee 24-hour employee assistance and counselling services, flu vaccination service and health checks

Should we receive a large number of applications, then this post could close sooner than the date stated. Shortlisted applicants will be contacted within two weeks of the closing date. Interview date Monday, 19 October 2026.

While we value diverse backgrounds and experiences, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship. Applicants must be able to prove they have the Right to Work in the U.K. We are committed to making our recruitment process as accessible as possible for everyone. This includes making adjustments or changes for disabled people, neurodiverse people or people with long-term health conditions. If you would like us to do anything differently during the interview or assessment process please contact our People team (humanresources@newcastle-staffs.gov.uk).

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council is committed to the employment and career development of disabled people, armed forces and care leavers. As such we offer an interview guarantee scheme where you meet the minimum criteria for the role. By minimum criteria we mean you must provide us with evidence in your application and supporting information which demonstrates that you generally meet the level of skills and experience defined in the person specification and as indicated by the Disability Confident symbol.