Locum Commercial Contracts & Procurement Lawyer – Full Time – Hybrid Working – Up to £65 per Hour Umbrella
 
Venn Group's specialist legal team is currently recruiting for a Locum Commercial Contracts & Procurement Lawyer to join a Local Authority in the Midlands. This is an excellent opportunity to support a busy, stable and collaborative legal team, undertaking a varied commercial contracts and procurement caseload with remote working.
 
The Role
 
Position: Locum Commercial Contracts Lawyer
Working Arrangement: Full Time, Hybrid working (with weekly office attendance desirable)
Contract Length: 6-month initial contract
Rate: Up to £65 per hour umbrella
Start: Short notice
 
Key Responsibilities
 
The successful candidate will advise on a broad range of complex funding, partnership, procurement and governance matters associated with employment, skills, education, training and economic inclusion programmes.
Funding and Grant Agreements

• Draft, negotiate and advise on grant funding agreements, funding allocations, subsidy arrangements and associated legal documentation.
• Advise on the Council’s rights, obligations and liabilities arising from externally funded public sector programmes.
• Ensure funding agreements appropriately protect the Council’s legal, financial and reputational interests.
• Provide advice on monitoring, assurance and audit requirements associated with grant funding.

Commercial Contracts and Procurement

• Provide legal advice on procurement matters relating to employment, education, training and skills programmes.
• Advise on compliance with the Procurement Act 2023 and associated legislation.
• Draft and negotiate contracts for services, delivery agreements, framework agreements and partnership arrangements.
• Support procurement exercises from project inception through to contract award.

Partnerships and Programme Delivery

• Advise on partnership arrangements.
• Support collaborative delivery models involving multiple organisations and funding streams.
• Provide pragmatic advice to programme teams to facilitate delivery while managing legal risk.
• Attend programme boards, steering groups and stakeholder meetings as required.

Governance and Decision-Making

• Advise on governance, constitutional and decision-making requirements.
• Support the preparation of Cabinet reports, Key Decision reports and delegated decision reports.
• Ensure compliance with Council governance frameworks and statutory obligations.
• Advise on transparency, accountability and public law considerations.
• Provide advice on devolution and combined authority arrangements.

Risk and Regulatory Compliance

• Identify legal and financial risks and provide practical mitigation advice.
• Advise on subsidy control, grant compliance and public sector regulatory issues.
• Support compliance with safeguarding, equality, information governance and data protection obligations.

Professional Practice

• Carry out all work in line with professional standards and the Council’s governance requirements.
• Keep up to date with legal developments and the pipeline of work.
• Support and mentor junior legal colleagues where appropriate.
• Promote continuous improvement and good practice within the legal team.

 
Candidate Requirements

• Qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Legal Executive (or equivalent) with experience in Commercial Contracts and Procurement Law
• Previous Local Government experience is essential
• Working knowledge of the Procurement Act 2023
• Strong drafting, negotiation and advisory skills
• Ability to manage a varied caseload independently and build effective working relationships with clients and colleagues

 
Job Reference:  J96969
 
For more information, please contact Philippa Stoate or Ebby Vallance on 07441 916 438 or email midlandslegal@venngroup.com.
 
Venn Group is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all candidates.
 
Due to the high volume of applications, it is not possible to provide feedback to every applicant. If you have not been contacted within 48 hours, please assume your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.
 
Locum Commercial Contracts & Procurement Lawyer – Full Time – Hybrid Working – Up to £65 per Hour Umbrella