Salary range: £68,427 - £76,588 p.a. inc. London weighting

Contract: Permanent

Hours of work: 36 hours per week

Location: Civic centre and other locations from time to time

Chief Lawyer - Contracts

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 Contracts Team, we are looking for a Chief Lawyer:
•    To actively lead the management of the department.
•    To secure the development, improvement, efficiency and success of the department and Council as a whole, through effective leadership, budget management, strategic direction, planning management and governance.
•    To provide high level and proactive legal advice on contracts, governance and procurement to the Council, its members and officers and to be a point of contact for members and senior officers on legal matters.
•    Allocation of work to appropriate members of staff.
•    Monitoring the quality of work undertaken by the team.
•    Managing a team of around 11 and ensuring adequate training and development.

The Person

The successful Contracts Chief Lawyer will possess:
•    A current practising certificate (either as a Barrister, Solicitor or Legal Executive).
•    A can-do attitude with the confidence to lead a team.
•    Strong experience in all matters relating to contracts, governance and procurement.
•    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 feel 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 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: 19 May 2026 (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.

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.

The information we collect from you will be shared with Cifas who will use it to prevent fraud, other unlawful or dishonest conduct, malpractice, and other seriously improper conduct. Further details of how your information will be used by us and Cifas and your data protection rights, can be found here.

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.

Job Description