What's involved with this role:
Note: the pay rate is provisional only and the and will be amended with the confirmed rate once received
Interim Child Care Advocate
Reference no: Surrey 110185
Pay Rate: up to £37.00 per hour PAYE max (TBC)
37 Monday - Friday, normal working hours
This opening assignment is for 9 months
City: Reigate
The post is court based, but also involves case preparation. The person should be able to work from home and assistance will be given for this (laptop, phone etc).
As a Childcare Advocate, your role is to provide legal advice and representation to the County Council, ensuring high-quality, continuously improving legal services. You will act as an advocate in litigation, representing the County Council in hearings of varying lengths and complexities, handling cases involving significant legal challenges and contributing to the Council’s values and objectives.
Key duties:
Represent the County Council as an advocate in childcare-related court proceedings, including complex and High Court cases, ensuring robust legal representation.
Oversee cases prepared by team lawyers, managing all aspects of hearings and reporting outcomes to the client and relevant team members.
Provide expert legal advice on the quality of evidence, case strength, and technical issues specific to child care proceedings, guiding the team and client effectively.
Offer training to Legal Services and clients, ensuring all parties are up-to-date on relevant childcare law and practice.
Contribute to achieving Service Plan targets, engage in cross-team projects, and maintain high standards of legal practice in accordance with Lexcel and departmental guidelines.
Key requirements:
Solicitor or Barrister, fully qualified to practise in England and Wales and who currently has or who is immediately able to obtain a practising certificate.
Excellent knowledge of the rules of evidence and practice within the family courts.
A sound understanding of the political and policy context within which care proceedings and children’s services operate both nationally and locally
Expertise in the law and practice relating to public child care law
Recent significant experience of legal practice in public child care law including significant advocacy experience in this area including contested final hearings.
Excellent advocacy and research skills.
Excellent negotiation skills.
Proficient in using IT including Word, Outlook (or equivalent email product) and electronic document management and case management system.
Please quote the Job Title & Vacancy Reference No. in your application, or we will be unable to match your CV to the role being applied for.
Qualification details and any other experience/skills relevant to the role to help support your application should be clearly shown in your CV.
Due to the number of CVs being sent to us unfortunately we cannot respond to all applications. If you have not heard from us within 3 working days please assume that you have not been shortlisted on this occasion.
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Job Ref: Surrey 110185
Anticipated Length of Assignment: Unless otherwise stated (we do carry the occasional permanent vacancy) all of our roles are technically temporary, though opening assignments can be and often are, extended by clients on a longer term basis and can sometimes become permanent.
Please do try to resist contacting us with requests for progress updates.
We really do read every CV sent to us. All applications will be acknowledged by a human, not a robot, provided the job remains live and provided your CV meets the “Essential Requirements” listed.
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Important: We will interpret your application as being permission to submit your CV to this role (with the right to represent you) unless you advise us to the contrary.