Job Description

Principal Legal Adviser for Information,

Office for Students

\xc2\xa375,712 + \xc2\xa310,000 allowance (and London allowance of \xc2\xa33,566 where appropriate)

Full time, Permanent

Generous Civil Service defined benefit pension.

London or Bristol

Play a key leadership role in an organisation that\'s shaping policy and regulation.

The challenge

Make a real difference to the lives of students by bringing your legal skills to the Office for Students (OfS). As the independent regulator of higher education in England, we ensure the best experience and the best value - for students, for taxpayers, for the economy and for the public good. This is an opportunity to grow your legal expertise by working across our diverse and rapidly evolving organisation on a wide range of regulatory and corporate issues.

The role

Taking up a senior leadership role, you will work closely with the Head of Legal Services and Deputy Head of Legal Services in:

providing professional know-how support to the legal team in the context of OfS\'s varied portfolio of higher education and public law matters; and

leading on the provision of legal advice relating to information law and OfS\'s delegation arrangements, as well as other areas of law as required.

You will work collaboratively with and at times project manage the work of legal and policy colleagues to deliver against OfS\'s priorities.

About you

This role would suit a qualified solicitor or barrister with significant experience advising in an equivalent public law and regulatory context, who can demonstrate their ability to effectively apply this know-how in a professional support setting. Experience of building productive relationships with key stakeholders such as heads of teams and policy leads, as well as leading projects and supervising the work of others is also essential. You will, of course, have exemplary communication skills, and will be ready to exert influence and negotiate effectively in a variety of situations. A flexible, creative approach will be important.

While your legal career to date may have been in a different sector, you are likely to have transferable legal experience across a range of different areas including:

• Working on litigation cases involving judicial review and/or regulatory appeals.

• The interpretation of regulatory rules such as licence conditions.

• The interpretation and application of sector-specific legislation which relates to a regulatory body.

• Information law matters, such as data protection, freedom of information and record management.

• Consideration of the legality of governance matters, including public body delegation arrangements.

• And investigation and enforcement in a regulatory context.

Working for us

The OfS regulates the higher education sector on behalf of all students. We value diversity and the wealth of perspectives, experience and ideas that it brings to our work and we strive to embed equality of opportunity in everything we do.

We recruit based on fair and open competition and welcome applications from candidates regardless of age, disability, race and ethnicity, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and socio-economic background.

At the OfS, we recognise that flexibility can enable people to work more effectively. A set of organisation-wide principles shape our approach to flexible and hybrid working, which our teams then use as guidance on how they deliver their business goals. This would usually mean working from the office for two days in a typical week.

To attract the widest possible field of qualified applicants, flexible working and part time working apply to this role.

In addition, our Total Reward Framework offers a range of benefits to suit your way of life. These include comprehensive learning and development, annual leave starting at 25 days per year (plus public holidays), access to the highly regarded Civil Service pension scheme and a variety of health benefits.

Closing date for applications: Sunday 1st October 2023

If you are interested in this role, click here to apply now: Office for Students | Principal Legal Adviser for Information, Governance and Know-How | Apply Now

The Lawyer