Administrator - Legal Aid Agency

The role requires attendance in the South Tyneside office at least 2 days per week, as it requires the post holder to log paper files received into the office.

Minimum Working Pattern:

If you are applying for a part-time role, please note that to meet business demands we need cover for a minimum of 28 hours and to cover 4 days of the week.

To meet legal requirements, if you are between the ages 16-18 and you are a successful candidate, you will be required to complete an apprenticeship after your initial on the job training.

The Legal Aid Agency

We are an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). We are responsible for operationally administering the legal aid fund to provide criminal and civil legal aid advice to people in England and Wales.

Our people are at the heart of achieving excellence. Employing around 1,200 colleagues across England and Wales, we feel proud to have some of the best People Survey results in the Civil Service.

Contract Management & Commissioning

The Contract Management Team work collaboratively with other LAA departments to interpret and apply the Contract to the providers which we manage. We ensure that providers deliver quality legal aid services in accordance with contractual requirements and relevant legislation. We interpret and analyse data to effectively manage risk and to influence providers to improve performance and effectively deliver change. We also engage with the wider justice system to promote partnership working and influence provider behaviour.

Peer Review Team

The Peer Review Team is responsible for the delivery of Peer Review audits, which are focused on the quality and accuracy of the advice that legal aid providers are delivering to their clients. These audits compliment the other reviews and compliance checks that are undertaken by Contract Management & Commissioning to ensure that we identify and manage areas of risk and contractual under performance.

The CMC Admin team forms part of the Contract Management & Assurance Directorate within the Legal Aid Agency. You will be part of a team that works closely with Contract Managers and with providers to provide admin support across multiple areas.

Job Summary

To work within the Peer Review and CMC Admin Team to ensure that all tasks undertaken by the team are completed as efficiently as possible and that relevant systems are accurately updated in accordance with time standards.

Key Responsibilities

Review files received in the South Tyneside office, ensuring the file name match the file list

Scan paper files and upload them to the shared drive

Carry out quality checks to ensure each scanned file is complete and accurate

Maintain accurate records and report to the peer review team any discrepancies identified during the process

Liaise with Contract Managers & providers to ensure amendment requests are accurately processed as efficiently as possible

Working with legal aid providers to ensure the records we hold are accurate.

Ensure accurate records are maintained of withdrawal information received from Contract Management colleagues

Process schedule amendments accurately with deadlines in mind

Report progress, including any issues which may impact quality or efficiency to the CMC Admin team manager

Ensure all monitoring tools/trackers are kept up to date

Acknowledge and respond to all queries and correspondence in a professional manner

Manage and prioritise own workload alongside colleagues to ensure all targets are achieved.

Provide administrative support to other areas of the wider CMC team.

Essential Knowledge, Experience and skills

Experience carrying out administrative tasks effectively.

Experience managing your own workload and meeting deadlines effectively.

Ability to work with attention to detail and maintain accurate records.

Effective communication skills.

Desirable Knowledge, Experience and skills

Ability to use IT.

Experience using Microsoft Excel.

Person Specification

You thrive in a process driven environment and understand the importance of operating within set rules and guidelines.

You enjoy working with data with a focus on accuracy.

You are confident when sharing information and able to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing

You remain effective and can be flexible when faced with conflicting deadlines

Assessment approach