Head of Legal (Maternity Cover)
| Posting date: | 09 March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £86,065 per year, pro rata |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 30 March 2026 |
| Location: | London, UK |
| Remote working: | Hybrid - work remotely up to 3 days per week |
| Company: | Professional Standards Authority |
| Job type: | Contract |
| Job reference: |
Summary
Head of Legal – Maternity Cover (Fixed Term Contract/Secondment Opportunity)
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS AUTHORITY FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
SALARY £86,065
About the Professional Standards Authority:
We are the UK’s independent regulatory oversight body helping to protect the public by improving the regulation and registration of health and care practitioners. We oversee the work of UK health and social care regulators and accredited registers of healthcare practitioners. Our work improves regulation and protects the public.
One of the Professional Standards Authority’s (PSA’s) key roles is to review the final fitness to practise panel decisions of the 10 regulators we oversee. Section 29 of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 gives us a discretion to appeal to the High Court if we consider that a fitness to practise decision is insufficient to protect the public.
About this role:
As the Head of Legal, you will lead the Section 29 team and the scrutiny of regulators’ fitness to practise decisions and processes. You will ensure that our fitness to practise review work is robust and consistently focused on protecting the public. This includes applying your expertise to assess cases that may present risks to public protection, managing our appeals and external Counsel, and working with external solicitors.
You will enable the PSA to encourage improvement in fitness to practise across professional regulation by using insights gained through our scrutiny work to share good practice and highlight emerging risks and themes externally.
You will also work collaboratively within the PSA, offering expert advice on fitness to practise issues, consultation responses and contributing to policy development, including regulatory reform.
This is a fixed-term role to cover maternity leave. We welcome applicants who are interested in pursuing this role as a secondment from another organisation, and would be pleased to discuss arrangements with employers supporting professional development opportunities for their staff.
About you
You will be a qualified lawyer with a current practising certificate and rights to conduct litigation, knowledge of professional regulation (including fitness to practise procedures) and strong strategic leadership experience. This is an important leadership position at a time of organisational change, and we are looking for someone who can provide stability, clear direction and confident management to the team.
We are looking for a driven, enthusiastic and self-directed individual who can:
• Demonstrate expertise in fitness to practise, including knowledge of the issues relevant to health and care regulators.
• Lead an organisational function, providing effective leadership, strategic direction and line management through change.
• Continuously look for opportunities to improve the effectiveness, efficiency and quality of our work
• Ensure good communication and relationship management with external stakeholders, including regulators, external Counsel and solicitors.
• Effectively report to and advise the Chief Executive, Senior Management Team and Board on the PSA’s section 29 function
• Contribute to the work of the PSA more widely, including as a member of the Senior Management Team, and advising other teams in their work that relates to fitness to practise.
Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion
We are committed to promoting a fair and inclusive workplace where all our staff can flourish and reach their full potential. We know that a diverse workforce, at all levels, allows for a more creative and productive environment bringing different viewpoints, knowledge and experience. Therefore, we are keen to improve the diversity within our organisation and would like to encourage individuals who come from a diverse range of backgrounds.
As a Disability Confident employer, we will guarantee an interview for people with disabilities who meet all the essential criteria and so if you would like to be considered under this scheme then please let us know.
How to apply
If you are interested in applying and would like to be sent an application form, wish to receive the application in an accessible format or want to find out more about the organisation and the role, please contact recruitment@professionalstandards.org.uk. Please note that we will not consider CVs.
Closing date for applications: 30 March 2026 (11:59pm)
Interviews will be held remotely on 21 April 2026. Please note that it is unlikely that an alternative interview date could be offered should you be unable to attend on that date. However please do contact us to discuss.
Should you wish for reasonable adjustments to be made at any stage of the process please do not hesitate to contact the HR team on 0207 389 8050 or email recruitment@professionalstandards.org.uk
The PSA currently operates a hybrid policy. In the first six months of employment, full time staff working five days will be expected to attend the office three days a week. However, should you require any reasonable adjustments please contact us directly to discuss.
The PSA’s offices are currently located in Blackfriars, London.
Our privacy notice which sets out how we will use your data can be found here https://www.professionalstandards.org.uk/privacy-policy
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS AUTHORITY FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
SALARY £86,065
About the Professional Standards Authority:
We are the UK’s independent regulatory oversight body helping to protect the public by improving the regulation and registration of health and care practitioners. We oversee the work of UK health and social care regulators and accredited registers of healthcare practitioners. Our work improves regulation and protects the public.
One of the Professional Standards Authority’s (PSA’s) key roles is to review the final fitness to practise panel decisions of the 10 regulators we oversee. Section 29 of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 gives us a discretion to appeal to the High Court if we consider that a fitness to practise decision is insufficient to protect the public.
About this role:
As the Head of Legal, you will lead the Section 29 team and the scrutiny of regulators’ fitness to practise decisions and processes. You will ensure that our fitness to practise review work is robust and consistently focused on protecting the public. This includes applying your expertise to assess cases that may present risks to public protection, managing our appeals and external Counsel, and working with external solicitors.
You will enable the PSA to encourage improvement in fitness to practise across professional regulation by using insights gained through our scrutiny work to share good practice and highlight emerging risks and themes externally.
You will also work collaboratively within the PSA, offering expert advice on fitness to practise issues, consultation responses and contributing to policy development, including regulatory reform.
This is a fixed-term role to cover maternity leave. We welcome applicants who are interested in pursuing this role as a secondment from another organisation, and would be pleased to discuss arrangements with employers supporting professional development opportunities for their staff.
About you
You will be a qualified lawyer with a current practising certificate and rights to conduct litigation, knowledge of professional regulation (including fitness to practise procedures) and strong strategic leadership experience. This is an important leadership position at a time of organisational change, and we are looking for someone who can provide stability, clear direction and confident management to the team.
We are looking for a driven, enthusiastic and self-directed individual who can:
• Demonstrate expertise in fitness to practise, including knowledge of the issues relevant to health and care regulators.
• Lead an organisational function, providing effective leadership, strategic direction and line management through change.
• Continuously look for opportunities to improve the effectiveness, efficiency and quality of our work
• Ensure good communication and relationship management with external stakeholders, including regulators, external Counsel and solicitors.
• Effectively report to and advise the Chief Executive, Senior Management Team and Board on the PSA’s section 29 function
• Contribute to the work of the PSA more widely, including as a member of the Senior Management Team, and advising other teams in their work that relates to fitness to practise.
Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion
We are committed to promoting a fair and inclusive workplace where all our staff can flourish and reach their full potential. We know that a diverse workforce, at all levels, allows for a more creative and productive environment bringing different viewpoints, knowledge and experience. Therefore, we are keen to improve the diversity within our organisation and would like to encourage individuals who come from a diverse range of backgrounds.
As a Disability Confident employer, we will guarantee an interview for people with disabilities who meet all the essential criteria and so if you would like to be considered under this scheme then please let us know.
How to apply
If you are interested in applying and would like to be sent an application form, wish to receive the application in an accessible format or want to find out more about the organisation and the role, please contact recruitment@professionalstandards.org.uk. Please note that we will not consider CVs.
Closing date for applications: 30 March 2026 (11:59pm)
Interviews will be held remotely on 21 April 2026. Please note that it is unlikely that an alternative interview date could be offered should you be unable to attend on that date. However please do contact us to discuss.
Should you wish for reasonable adjustments to be made at any stage of the process please do not hesitate to contact the HR team on 0207 389 8050 or email recruitment@professionalstandards.org.uk
The PSA currently operates a hybrid policy. In the first six months of employment, full time staff working five days will be expected to attend the office three days a week. However, should you require any reasonable adjustments please contact us directly to discuss.
The PSA’s offices are currently located in Blackfriars, London.
Our privacy notice which sets out how we will use your data can be found here https://www.professionalstandards.org.uk/privacy-policy
Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme
Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.