Lawyer – Corporate Governance
| Posting date: | 23 January 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £32,417 to £46,338 per year, pro rata |
| Additional salary information: | (Career Grade 6-8) plus £4,000 market supplement at Grades 7 and 8 |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 15 February 2026 |
| Location: | Sittingbourne, Kent |
| Remote working: | Hybrid - work remotely up to 1 day per week |
| Company: | Swale Borough Council |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: |
Summary
About Us:
Mid Kent Legal Services (MKLS) provides legal services and advice across the Mid-Kent area (to Swale, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells councils). The service covers a range of areas including Property and Regeneration, Planning, Contentious, Contracts & Commissioning and Corporate Governance. Working across multiple councils means a range of high-level, challenging and impactful work ranging from supporting the delivery of garden communities, to the redevelopment of large shopping centres, to letting very large contracts, to delivering affordable housing. In short, it’s a real opportunity to make a difference in an area with vibrant towns, beautiful villages and countryside and fantastic leisure and cultural amenities.
MKLS’s has a reputation as being forward thinking, progressive and innovative and is closely and strongly aligned with is partner authorities. It provides a supportive and nurturing environment, providing opportunities for staff to progress internally and uses technology to maximise the effective use of lawyers' time. In short, it is a great place to work.
We are now looking for a Corporate Governance Lawyer to join us on a full-time, permanent basis, working 34 hours per week.
The Benefits:
- Local Government pension scheme
- Generous annual leave plus time off office closure between Christmas and New Year (and an option to
purchase extra leave
- Wellbeing support including confidential advice, counselling, flu vaccines
- Discounts on leisure, retail, and fuel and salary sacrifice schemes including Cycle to Work and car leasing
- Generous sick pay
- Free parking across the 3 Partner Authority sites
- Season ticket loans for rail/bus travel
This is the ideal opportunity for Corporate Governance Lawyers with a track record of providing legal advice to join our forward-thinking shared service.
With exceptional benefits, a brilliant pension scheme and opportunities for professional growth, you’ll enjoy a rewarding public sector career with more flexibility and development and significantly less commuting.
What’s more, we offer outstanding working arrangements, with the majority of your time spent working from home and a 34 hour working week including 1pm finishes on Fridays. On top of this, we offer a number of working options such as compressed hours, nine day fortnights and part-time working, all within an inclusive and supportive working environment where your wellbeing is prioritised.
The Role:
As a Corporate Governance Lawyer, you will manage a caseload of corporate governance work with non-complex work being carried out with minimal supervision.
Ensuring we operate at the forefront of legal excellence and align with Lexcel standards, you will provide high quality legal advice and services to elected members, senior managers and staff across all three local authorities.
You will supervise less senior fee earners and Legal Support Officers, ensuring high-quality support in legal work.
Additionally, you will:
- Stay updated on legal developments in corporate governance law and practice
- Represent MKLS in internal working groups and external meetings
- Uphold the Council’s policies
This is an exciting time to join the MKLS Corporate Governance Team with a number of large and high-profile projects happening across the Partner Authorities.
About You:
To be considered as a Corporate Governance Lawyer, you will need:
- Minimum of CILEX Level 3 (or equivalent) obtained and working towards Level 6. Qualified solicitor,
barrister, chartered legal executive or have equivalent qualification and experience
- Legal practice experience in corporate governance
- A track record of providing legal advice and support to senior leaders and key decision-makers in
corporate governance law and practice
- Experience advising Members on all aspects of corporate governance law and procedures
-Experience operating in politically sensitive environments
- Knowledge and understanding of the political nature of local government and democratic process
- A full, valid UK driving licence
Other organisations may call this role Legal Counsel, Lawyer, Legal Services Manager, Solicitor, Barrister, Chartered Legal Executive, or Legal Manager.
Selection Process:
Following the submission of your application form, it will be reviewed by the recruiting manager. Those that are successful in securing an interview can expect a face-to-face interview.
Mid Kent Legal Services and Maidstone, Swale and Tunbridge Wells local authorities are equal opportunities employers, value diversity and are strongly committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and all applicants for employment. Equal opportunities are the only acceptable way to conduct business and we believe that the more inclusive our environments are, the better our work will be.
If you would like to discuss this position, please contact Timothy Pyant, Interim Business Manager on 01622 602155.
Job Description and Person Specification: https://docs.maidstone.gov.uk/jobs/Lawyer-Corporate-Governance-JDPS-Jan-26.pdf
Interview Date: w/c 2nd March 2026
Mid Kent Legal Services (MKLS) provides legal services and advice across the Mid-Kent area (to Swale, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells councils). The service covers a range of areas including Property and Regeneration, Planning, Contentious, Contracts & Commissioning and Corporate Governance. Working across multiple councils means a range of high-level, challenging and impactful work ranging from supporting the delivery of garden communities, to the redevelopment of large shopping centres, to letting very large contracts, to delivering affordable housing. In short, it’s a real opportunity to make a difference in an area with vibrant towns, beautiful villages and countryside and fantastic leisure and cultural amenities.
MKLS’s has a reputation as being forward thinking, progressive and innovative and is closely and strongly aligned with is partner authorities. It provides a supportive and nurturing environment, providing opportunities for staff to progress internally and uses technology to maximise the effective use of lawyers' time. In short, it is a great place to work.
We are now looking for a Corporate Governance Lawyer to join us on a full-time, permanent basis, working 34 hours per week.
The Benefits:
- Local Government pension scheme
- Generous annual leave plus time off office closure between Christmas and New Year (and an option to
purchase extra leave
- Wellbeing support including confidential advice, counselling, flu vaccines
- Discounts on leisure, retail, and fuel and salary sacrifice schemes including Cycle to Work and car leasing
- Generous sick pay
- Free parking across the 3 Partner Authority sites
- Season ticket loans for rail/bus travel
This is the ideal opportunity for Corporate Governance Lawyers with a track record of providing legal advice to join our forward-thinking shared service.
With exceptional benefits, a brilliant pension scheme and opportunities for professional growth, you’ll enjoy a rewarding public sector career with more flexibility and development and significantly less commuting.
What’s more, we offer outstanding working arrangements, with the majority of your time spent working from home and a 34 hour working week including 1pm finishes on Fridays. On top of this, we offer a number of working options such as compressed hours, nine day fortnights and part-time working, all within an inclusive and supportive working environment where your wellbeing is prioritised.
The Role:
As a Corporate Governance Lawyer, you will manage a caseload of corporate governance work with non-complex work being carried out with minimal supervision.
Ensuring we operate at the forefront of legal excellence and align with Lexcel standards, you will provide high quality legal advice and services to elected members, senior managers and staff across all three local authorities.
You will supervise less senior fee earners and Legal Support Officers, ensuring high-quality support in legal work.
Additionally, you will:
- Stay updated on legal developments in corporate governance law and practice
- Represent MKLS in internal working groups and external meetings
- Uphold the Council’s policies
This is an exciting time to join the MKLS Corporate Governance Team with a number of large and high-profile projects happening across the Partner Authorities.
About You:
To be considered as a Corporate Governance Lawyer, you will need:
- Minimum of CILEX Level 3 (or equivalent) obtained and working towards Level 6. Qualified solicitor,
barrister, chartered legal executive or have equivalent qualification and experience
- Legal practice experience in corporate governance
- A track record of providing legal advice and support to senior leaders and key decision-makers in
corporate governance law and practice
- Experience advising Members on all aspects of corporate governance law and procedures
-Experience operating in politically sensitive environments
- Knowledge and understanding of the political nature of local government and democratic process
- A full, valid UK driving licence
Other organisations may call this role Legal Counsel, Lawyer, Legal Services Manager, Solicitor, Barrister, Chartered Legal Executive, or Legal Manager.
Selection Process:
Following the submission of your application form, it will be reviewed by the recruiting manager. Those that are successful in securing an interview can expect a face-to-face interview.
Mid Kent Legal Services and Maidstone, Swale and Tunbridge Wells local authorities are equal opportunities employers, value diversity and are strongly committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and all applicants for employment. Equal opportunities are the only acceptable way to conduct business and we believe that the more inclusive our environments are, the better our work will be.
If you would like to discuss this position, please contact Timothy Pyant, Interim Business Manager on 01622 602155.
Job Description and Person Specification: https://docs.maidstone.gov.uk/jobs/Lawyer-Corporate-Governance-JDPS-Jan-26.pdf
Interview Date: w/c 2nd March 2026
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Disability Confident
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