Join to apply for the Advocate role at London Borough of Lambeth

Hybrid working

Overview

Children's Social Care Advocate x2 posts. Plus £5,000 pa market supplement. This is a hybrid role within Lambeth Legal Services, joining a specialist child litigation team providing advocacy and legal advice to the Council in child protection and welfare matters.

Responsibilities

• Deliver at pace specialist advice on complex legal matters with appropriate legal and factual analysis, with minimum supervision in a variety of forums.
• Provide cost‑effective high quality, accurate, strategic, solutions‑focused legal advice and representation in childcare law, local government law and related areas as allocated.
• Work as part of a team and on own initiative; be enthusiastic, highly organised, proactive, flexible, and able to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Support the Principal Social Care Lawyer in meeting operational requirements, service level agreements and performance targets.
• Build and maintain excellent client relations and act as a role model to achieve service and council‑wide objectives.
• Provide advocacy as an in‑house advocate in Social Services matters to include contested and final hearings of up to 14 days (care, placement, adoption, DOL and private law proceedings).
• Ensure compliance with professional standards and contribute to the continuous improvement of the team.

Qualifications

• Qualified Solicitor, Barrister or CILEx Advocate with a current practising certificate.
• Experience of working in childcare/child litigation; public sector experience is preferred.
• Ability to provide advocacy as an in‑house advocate and to handle contested and final hearings up to 14 days.
• DBS check required (Enhanced DBS via Disclosure Application).

Salary and Benefits

Starting salary £61,686 per annum rising in annual increments to £64,938 per annum (including Living Wage). Plus £5,000 per annum market supplement. A £5,000 welcome bonus is payable to legally qualified new starters (50% after 6 months and 50% after 12 months in the role).

About Us

It is an exciting time to join Lambeth Council, with bold ambitions for the future of Lambeth’s communities through the Lambeth 2030 Plan “Our Future, Our Lambeth.” We are committed to One Lambeth values and behaviours — Equity, Ambition, Kindness, and Accountability — and we regularly review our values page for more information.

How to Apply

To apply, click the apply button and complete an online application. In your supporting statement, clearly demonstrate how you meet the shortlist criteria marked with an 'A'. We operate an anonymised application process; remove personal details from your CV or personal statement before uploading.

Recruitment Timelines

Advert close date: 11:59pm on Sunday 28 September 2025. Shortlisting: 29 and 30 September 2025. Interviews: 6–10 October 2025.

Equality, Diversity and Other Information

Lambeth is committed to safer recruitment and is proud to be a Stonewall diversity champion, a Living Wage Employer, and to guarantee interviews for all disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria of the role.