Trainee Solicitor Graduate
| Posting date: | 17 July 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £24,404 to £25,584 per year |
| Additional salary information: | Competitive |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 04 August 2025 |
| Location: | Coventry, One Friargate, Station Square, Coventry, CV1 2GN |
| Company: | Coventry City Council |
| Job type: | Contract |
| Job reference: | coventrycc/TP/46208/11370 |
Summary
We value diverse perspectives and experiences and are striving to create a workplace culture that is inclusive, is accepting of all and is free from discrimination and bias.
Coventry City Council’s Legal and Procurement Services are part of the public sector, providing in-house legal support and having custodial responsibility for public spending to Coventry City Council.
The Legal Services team offers a professional, comprehensive, tailor-made service to address legal issues of every description. The team is highly motivated, eager to develop and face challenges head-on.
The Procurement and Commissioning team are the custodian for purchasing within the Council. They are responsible for making sure that the Council spends public money in line with its wider community strategy around the economy, society and the environment.
Our ValuesIn line with our One Coventry Values, we want to ensure that our communities are represented across our workforce. A vital part of this is ensuring we are a truly inclusive organisation that encourages diversity in all respects, including diversity of thinking. We particularly welcome applicants from minority ethnic, LGBT+, disabled and neurodiverse communities to make a real difference to our residents so that equity and respect remains at the heart of everything we do.
Our Values are:
- Open and fair: We are fair, open, and transparent.
- Nurture and develop: We help and encourage everyone to be their best and do their best.
- Engage and empower: We talk and listen to others, working together as one.
- Create and innovate: We embrace new ways of working to continuously improve.
- Own and be accountable: We work together to deliver the best services for our residents.
- Value and respect: We put diversity and inclusion at the heart of all we do.
We are looking to recruit three new Graduate Apprentices into the following teams:
Advocacy Team (x2): responsible for areas such as Private and Public Children Law Proceedings, including Adoption Proceedings, as well as aspects of Adult Services, Court of Protection and Education LawPlace Team (x1): responsible for areas such as commercial property transactions and supporting on planning and highway-related matters.
This is an exciting and innovative opportunity to access first-rate training in a friendly and supportive working environment, while being supported to complete a solicitor apprenticeship and ultimately qualify. Apprenticeships give you the opportunity and support to develop new work-placed skills in an organisation committed to your professional success.
The successful candidates will enrol on the Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship with the University of Law. Further information about this apprenticeship can be found here
Although you will be based in either the Advocacy Team or the Place Team, the variety of specialisms covered by each of our teams means that you will have the opportunity to experience considerable diversity of work during your training period.
The Advocacy Team provides court and tribunal advocacy services in a large volume of public children and adoption law proceedings, as well as aspects of private children law cases involving disputes between individuals. There is also the provision of advocacy services in matters relating to Adult Services, the Court of Protection, and Education Tribunal matters.
The Place team provides a high-level service to various client areas throughout the Council and primarily deals with commercial property transactions, including the granting of leases and sales and purchases. The team also deals with academy conversions for Education, Deferred Payment Agreements and Pathways Loans and Grants on behalf of the Council’s Exceptional Allowances Panel. Support is also provided to the Council’s Planning and Highways Departments, thereby assisting them with the discharge of their legal duties as Planning Authority and Highway Authority.
Who are we looking for?To be eligible to apply for this role, at the time of submitting your application, you will already have attained either a qualifying law degree at 2:2 or above or a Graduate Diploma in Law. Your qualification must have been attained within the last 3 years, at the start of your apprenticeship training course (i.e., completed no earlier than 2023. You will also need Maths and English at GCSE 4/C or above, or Maths and English Functional Skills level 2. Details of qualifying law degrees can be found on the Solicitors Regulation Authority website
Please note, you will not be eligible for this course if:
- You have already completed the LPC (Legal Practice Course) qualification.
- You must not have already studied towards the Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship Standard
- If you have any exemptions for the SQE2 (Solicitors Qualifying Examination).
You should also satisfy yourself that you comply with the University and Apprenticeship other eligibility criteria, which can be found here: Law Apprenticeships for Students | University of Law
You will need to be enthusiastic, possess a strong desire to learn, have good research and analytical skills, excellent IT and communication skills and the ability to relate well to others.
You will also need to demonstrate an ability and commitment to completing the Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship Standard, which will take approximately 27 months to complete (commencing December 2025).
Interview dates: 26, 28 and 29 August 2025
If you need help or support to complete your application, please visit our accessibility page to see how we can assist you.
Guaranteed Interview Scheme - As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role and identify with one of the below criteria:
- Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
- Are currently in care or have previously been in care
- If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition
For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'. If there is any evidence of a candidate using AI to complete their application, then the application will be rejected unless the candidate can provide a justification which the Council considers to be reasonable.
About CoventryCoventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.
We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.
At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 5100 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.
To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.
If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies
Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme