Legal Casework Manager - hybrid in Barry

Location: Hybrid (split between home-working and either London or Cardiff)

This role sits within a pay grade with a pay range of £33,367 to £50,051. The salary on appointment will be set at the lower end of the pay range, to a maximum of £41,709 depending on the candidate's skills and experience. This approach aims to ensure fair compensation for new hires while maintaining alignment with the structured pay scale for the role.

It’s an exciting time to join the Ramblers as we have recently refreshed our strategy to support the delivery of our long-term ambitions. We need your drive, knowledge, skills, and creativity to help us raise awareness of the Ramblers and what we stand for, enabling the charity to grow its supporter base and open up the joys and wellbeing benefits of walking to many more people.

Context and purpose of role:

At Ramblers we work to empower the public and volunteers to take action to protect paths and access – by providing specialist advice and undertaking legal action to protect and expand the rights of way network. As a member of the Programmes team, the Legal Casework Manager will be responsible for the successful development and delivery of the programme.

Key responsibilities:

• Lead on the development and operational delivery of the Legal Casework programme, including processes for case assessment and selection.
• Develop a pipeline of legal action to protect and expand the rights of way network – liaising with external legal advisers, preparing documents for access to the Designated Legal Fund and monitoring developments.
• Be a source of expertise on rights of way law and practice, advising members of the public and volunteers on technical issues related to public rights of way.
• Provide training and support for volunteers on aspects of rights of way law and practice.
• Design and develop resources and processes to support programme implementation.
• Work with Nations and campaigns colleagues to ensure that relevant legislation and government policy and practice, at both central and local levels, are as beneficial as possible to the walking public.
• Ensure our legal casework is contributing to the delivery of our refreshed strategy by focusing legal action on priority communities.
• Be responsible for managing a legal budget in line with programme goals and objectives, to ensure best use of charitable funds.
• Be responsible for evaluation and reporting, to ensure the programme meets KPIs and delivers measurable impact.
• Horizon-scan to identify key threats and opportunities for legislation and litigation and need for volunteer guidance and training.

Other:

• Work collaboratively as a member of the Programmes team, to share learning and develop innovative practice in programme design and development.
• Engage and proactively develop excellent working relationships across the organisation.
• Undertake such other duties as may be reasonably required of the post.

The person:

Knowledge and Experience:

• Expertise in rights of way law and practice, as well as relevant legislation and government policy.
• Experience of working with external legal professionals, including solicitors and consultants, and monitoring legal developments.
• Experience providing technical advice to members of the public and volunteers on specialist issues.
• Experience drafting and proof-reading documents for submissions in legal proceedings (e.g. Statement of Case, Proof of Evidence).

Skills and Leadership:

• Ability to develop, introduce and champion new ways of working as an expert on rights of way law and practice.
• Exceptional oral, written and digital communication skills – with an ability to convey complex legal information clearly to a range of different audiences.
• Exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to identify high-impact strategic litigation within public sector law.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to build strong relationships, working with a range of stakeholders.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively to achieve common goals.
• Ability to use initiative and to be flexible and adaptable in approach.
• Ability to analyse information thoroughly and make sound decisions and recommendations.

Personal Attributes:

• Interest in walking and a commitment to the principles of inclusion and enabling everyone to feel welcome in the outdoors.
• Able to engage diverse audiences, including community partners and senior decision makers.
• Flexible and able to develop strong, collaborative team relationships.
• Entrepreneurial approach to developing and growing innovative projects.
• Flexible and resilient with the ability to work under pressure and to deadlines.
• Willingness to take on different tasks and responsibilities as needed.

Values and Behaviours:

Our values are the core principles that guide us daily in our work and our membership of the Ramblers. We all share the passion that walking is for everyone and by living our shared values we can ensure the Ramblers is an organisation to be proud of. Our values will earn trust for the Ramblers brand which will allow us to open up a world of walking opportunities for even more people.

• Inclusive: We make everyone feel welcome and part of the Ramblers community. We make sure we all feel respected and accepted and know our contributions make a difference in achieving our mission.
• Inspiring: We strive to inspire people through the way we act and the things we say. We channel our passion and ambition so others are moved to help us achieve our mission.
• Empowering: We empower and encourage each other to make a positive contribution to our teams and the Ramblers. We do all we can to make sure everyone has the ability, and feels confident, to take action.
• Responsible: We take responsibility for ourselves and those around us seriously, by always acting in a safe and supportive way. We care about the environment and make sure we do what we say we will do.

Remote Status: hybrid