Interim Head of Legal / Deputy Monitoring Officer North

Job Reference: CAV/MA21

Venn Group s expert Legal Team are pleased to be recruiting for an interim Deputy Monitoring Officer to join a Local Authority in the North of England. We anticipate that this post will be for at least 6 months whilst the Authority look to recruit permanently. 

The role is offered on a hybrid working basis, with expectation of attending the office a couple of times a month. The client is ideally looking for someone to take on the position on a full-time basis. However, candidates with part-time availability will also be considered.

This role is suitable for a qualified Solicitor or Barrister with Deputy Monitoring Officer Experience gained within Local Government.

Duties include:

• Act as the Head of Legal (Place)
• To act as the Council s Deputy Monitoring Officer and to attend Council and other meetings as required by the Director of Legal and Governance;  
• To be a Senior Legal Advisor to the Council, including providing advice and guidance on legal and governance issues to all levels of the Council, including the Mayor, Members, Leadership Management Team, and other officers; 
• To advise members in relation to Standards matters including, where necessary, attendance at, and advice to, Standards Committee meetings; 
• To provide high-level effective support to the Mayor, the Executive, Scrutiny, and all Members as Deputy for the Monitoring Officer and Director of Legal and Governance;  
• To lead and develop Legal Services alongside the Head of Legal People, embedding a business partnering approach to provide a high quality and effective Legal Service that is responsive to the Council s needs; 
• To provide management oversight to the Legal Services Places team 
• To provide management oversight to the Legal Practice Team 
• To carry out effective budget and performance management of Legal Services including the development and application of best practice in legal matters covering policies and procedures and the necessary controls and records to ensure that the service meets targets and is modern and responsive to the Council s needs;  
• To act as the Council s strategic leadership link with the Coroner Service, including oversight of the Coroner s budget and resources and maintaining strategic links with the other Councils in the partnership as the lead authority; 
• To act as an Emergency Management Incident Co-Ordinator in the event of an emergency, including being contactable out of hours;  
• To report directly to the Director of Legal Services and to undertake such other duties and responsibilities, commensurate with the grading and nature of the post, as may from time to time be required

Hourly Rate: 600 - 800 per day, can be negotiable

Should you wish to be considered for this role, please contact Cristina Vernava (cvernava@venngroup.com) or by calling 0161 830 1830.

Venn Group is an equal opportunities employment business and employment agency and welcomes applications from all candidates.