Principal Lawyer - Adult Social Care

Are you an experienced legal professional looking for an opportunity to combine high-level legal work with strategic leadership and meaningful public service?

Reading Borough Council is looking for a talented and forward-thinking Principal Lawyer - Adult Social Care to lead the delivery of high-quality legal services, providing expert advice and support on complex and sensitive matters while helping shape services that make a real difference to our residents.

This is an opportunity to bring your legal expertise, sound judgement and leadership skills to a role where your advice will support informed decision-making, effective service delivery and the Council's wider strategic objectives.

We seek the best talent from the widest pool of people as diversity and inclusion is the key to our success. Reading Borough Council is a Disability Confident Employer and is committed to the recruitment and continued employment of people with disabilities.

We support hybrid working, it's important to us that working arrangements are designed to enable our employees to excel and within this role you'll have the opportunity to work in a way that suits your lifestyle.

About The Role:

As part of the Berkshire Joint Legal Team, you'll join a specialist shared legal service across Berkshire providing expert legal support across Adult Social Care, Children's Social Care, Education, and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). Working alongside experienced colleagues from a range of disciplines, you'll benefit from a collaborative environment, opportunities to share knowledge and expertise, and exposure to a diverse range of complex and rewarding work.

As Principal Lawyer, you will lead and manage a team delivering high-quality legal services across Adult Social Care and related areas. You will provide expert advice to senior officers, directors, elected members and partner organisations, supporting decision-making on complex, high-risk and politically sensitive matters.

You will manage a varied caseload and provide leadership on matters including:

Adult social care duties and responsibilities

Care Act 2014 matters

Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards

Court of Protection proceedings

Safeguarding adults

Ordinary residence disputes

Human Rights and Equality Act matters

Judicial reviews and complex litigation

Multi-agency partnership working

Alongside your legal expertise, you will play a key role in developing your team, driving continuous improvement, embracing legal technology and supporting the wider strategic objectives of the Council.

You will be a confident and experienced legal professional with significant post-qualification experience and a strong track record of handling complex legal matters. You will bring excellent analytical, communication and advocacy skills, together with the ability to influence and advise stakeholders at all levels.

You will also have experience of leading or supervising legal professionals, managing competing priorities and driving service improvement. You will be comfortable working independently, exercising sound judgement and navigating politically sensitive issues with professionalism and resilience.

We are looking for someone who can combine technical legal expertise with a pragmatic, solutions-focused approach and a genuine commitment to delivering excellent public services.

You will need to be a qualified Solicitor, Barrister or Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX), holding a current practising certificate and entitled to practise in England, with significant post-qualification experience.

Experience of local government legal services and a strong understanding of the challenges facing public sector organisations will be important.