Childcare Lawyer
Bury Council
Childcare Lawyer - Transform Lives Through Law Join Bury Council's Award-Winning Legal Services Team £39,152 - £40,777 | 37 hours per week | Hybrid Working | Full Training & Support Your Opportunity to Make a Lasting Impact Are you a legal professional who wants to use your expertise to protect the most vulnerable in our society? Join Bury Council's Legal Services team and play a vital role in safeguarding children while building an exceptional career in public service law. This is an exciting time to join us. As a growing council undertaking ambitious development plans across our six townships, we're expanding our legal team to meet increasing demand. You'll be part of an award-winning service that's integral to achieving timely permanence plans and the best possible outcomes for children. Whether you're newly qualified or transitioning from private practice, you'll receive comprehensive support while handling complex, meaningful cases that make a real difference to children's lives every single day. At Bury Council, we are committed to improving the lives of our residents and creating opportunities for our communities to thrive. Guided by our “Let’s Do It” strategy, we are working together with partners and residents to reduce inequalities, support economic growth and ensure everyone can live well in Bury. About Your Role: As our Childcare Lawyer, you'll be at the heart of our child protection work, handling a diverse caseload that will challenge and develop your skills: Core Responsibilities: The Impact You'll Make: You'll directly influence permanence planning for vulnerable children, ensuring they receive the protection and stability they deserve. Every case you handle contributes to transforming young lives and supporting families in crisis. Who You Are: Essential Requirements: Background: Why Bury Council is the Right Choice: At Bury Council, we are committed to improving the lives of our residents and creating opportunities for our communities to thrive. Guided by our “Let’s Do It” strategy, we are working together with partners and residents to reduce inequalities, support economic growth and ensure everyone can live well in Bury. Our Benefits Package Includes: Generous Holiday Allowance Enjoy up to 26 days annual leave per year plus bank holidays, increasing to 31 days after five years of Local Government service. Want more leave? You can purchase up to two additional weeks. A Leading Pension You'll be enrolled in the UK's largest Local Government Pension Scheme, with plenty of options to top up your benefits. Includes life cover of three times your salary as a lump sum. Enhanced Parental and Carers Leave Take advantage of our enhanced family leave options, designed to provide ample time for you to bond with your newborn or support your family during critical life events. Brilliant Perks Access a range of discounts, from saving on the weekly shop to holidays and days out. Plus, discounts on phone contracts, cycle to work scheme, free flu jabs and eye tests, and more. Learn and Grow We are dedicated to nurturing talent and providing you with the tools to thrive. Take part in a diverse set of learning opportunities, from workshops and training sessions through to apprenticeships and qualifications. All this begins with our comprehensive onboarding process. A Good Employment Charter Member We are committed to offering secure, flexible work and embedding fairness into everything we do. We review pay annually, recognise trade unions, and are constantly working to offer the best possible health and wellbeing support throughout all stages of your working life. We also give back to the community with two days pro-rata paid volunteering leave, in addition to existing benefits. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion At Bury Council, we believe that a diverse workforce helps us better understand and serve our communities. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued, respected and empowered to reach their full potential. We want our workforce to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and recognise that diversity of thought, experience and perspective makes us stronger as a local authority. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and experiences and actively encourage applications from groups that are currently underrepresented within our workforce. We are committed to ensuring that our recruitment processes are fair, transparent and accessible to all. Reasonable Adjustments and Disability Confident Employer We're a Disability Confident Employer, offering: - A Workplace Adjustment Hub which provides specialist support, advice and guidance to ensure you have the adjustments needed to thrive at work. - Disabled Staff Network, Neurodiversity Staff Network and Mental Health Staff Network that provide safe and inclusive spaces to share experiences and opportunities to influence council practice. - A strong commitment to ensuring all information adheres to accessibility standards and that our workplaces are accessible and disability-friendly. We want every candidate to have the opportunity to perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. For more information about the role or to discuss any adjustments, please email HROperations@bury.gov.uk quoting the job reference number, job title and your name. Our dedicated HR team is committed to providing you with personalised support tailored to your needs. Guaranteed Assessment Scheme We guarantee assessments for applicants who meet the recruiting panel's minimum shortlisting requirements for the role and identify with at least one of the following criteria: - Members of the Armed Forces community, including serving personnel and veterans. - Current or former care leavers. - Individuals with a disability or long-term health condition. About Bury As a Corporate Parent, ensure that the work and services you deliver considers our care experienced young people, promotes their life chances empowers them to influence the policies, services, and decisions that affect them, champions their rights, and ensure they grow up in the best possible way Next steps
The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare or children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. Appointment may be subject to a satisfactory disclosure at the appropriate level under the Disclosure and Barring Service.
In line with safer recruitment, please ensure that your application/CV covers your full employment history and there is a reason noted for any gaps in employment. Successful candidates will be asked to provide relevant references for the past ten years and character references will not be accepted.
Benefits of working for Bury Council
To hear about the benefits for working with Bury Council, please visit A good employer | greater jobs
We support employees to work with agility, where appropriate for the post and service requirements.
We are committed to Bury being an equal society that recognises values and embraces all people, regardless of any difference, for the skills, abilities and experiences they bring into the workforce and the wider community. Therefore we guarantee an interview for disabled people, looked after children/ care leavers, armed forces personnel (including reservists and veterans) and carers of adults or disabled children if they meet the essential criteria.Supporting Documents
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Ready to apply?
Location
Knowsley Street, , Bury, BL9 0SW, United Kingdom
Job ID
12166
Supporting You Through Every Step of Your Journey
We want every candidate to feel welcomed, informed and confident when applying for a role with us.
This section brings together everything you need to succeed - from guidance on writing an authentic application to understanding how to use AI responsibly.
You’ll also find information about our Greater Manchester commitments, including our inclusive employment schemes and standards, as well as tools to help you explore your potential pay, benefits and entitlements. We’re here to ensure you have the support you need at every stage.
Working for a local authority in Greater Manchester
Local authorities across Greater Manchester are proud to be part of a shared commitment to widening access to employment and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to thrive.
These commitments span a number of long‑standing schemes and initiatives designed to open doors, remove barriers and ensure all applicants feel valued and respected throughout their employment journey.
Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter
Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter
Our Guaranteed Assessment Scheme
Our Guaranteed Assessment Scheme
Greater Manchester Continuous Service Commitment
Greater Manchester Continuous Service Commitment
Greater Manchester People Inclusion Standards
Greater Manchester People Inclusion Standards
Your Pay, Your Benefits, Your Future
Explore easy‑to‑use tools that help you understand your take‑home pay and how different employment situations may affect the financial support available to you and your household.
Calculate Your Take‑Home Pay
Use this salary calculator to estimate your net pay after tax, National Insurance, and pension contributions.
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See how changes in employment, hours or salary may affect your benefits and household income.
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Applying Authentically With AI: Our Greater Manchester Approach
Across Greater Manchester’s local authorities, we want to hear your genuine experiences, skills and motivations, expressed in your own words.
To keep our recruitment process fair and inclusive, please complete your application personally and follow the instructions carefully. AI can be used to support you - for example, to help structure your answers or as a reasonable adjustment - but your application should still reflect your authentic voice.
Applications that depend too heavily on AI‑generated content may not progress to shortlisting.
This guidance outlines acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI, along with suggestions for using it in a way that supports you while keeping your application true to you.
What Is AI and How Do We Use It Across Greater Manchester?
AI refers to technology that can create or refine content, such as text, ideas, summaries, or planning. It can help improve productivity, problem-solving, and creativity.
We’re open to using innovative digital tools where they can help us work smarter and deliver better services for our residents. However, every use of AI is carefully considered to make sure it is ethical, responsible, and aligned with public-sector values.
When it comes to recruitment, we take a human-centred approach.
This means:
A trained hiring manager reads every application
Shortlisting is based on objective criteria required for the job
Interviews are conducted in person or via teams by the hiring manager for the role
All hiring decisions are made by hiring managers, not algorithms
AI does not make decisions in our recruitment process and our managers are being upskilled to spot AI in applications, particularly when this might have been used in a way that doesn’t feel genuine. If something in an application raises a question or concern, we will test this out with assessments or at the interview stage to confirm authenticity.
Our aim isn’t to catch anyone out but to make sure we’re getting to know the real you, giving every candidate a fair chance and finding the right person for the role.
Using AI in Your Application
When it comes to job applications, what matters most to us is you. We want to see your personality, your experience, and what excites you about joining our team.
We recognise that AI can be a helpful tool to support accessibility during the application process. If you choose to use AI for support, please read the instructions carefully and make sure your application is written in your own words, reflecting your genuine skills, knowledge, experience and enthusiasm.
We’re looking forward to hearing your story.
How to use AI Effectively and Responsibly
Your application is your chance to show us:
Who you are
What you can bring
The values you hold
Why you want to make a difference
AI can help you organise your thoughts or improve clarity but it cannot express your unique voice, experiences, or motivations.
AI is most helpful when used to:
Help you structure the information you are providing to evidence the criteria
Give examples of how to use STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result)
Proof-read to highlight grammar or spelling errors
Provide inspiration if you're finding it difficult to find the right words to explain something
But remember: your honesty, lived experience, and motivations are irreplaceable.
Do’s and Don’ts for Using AI in the Recruitment Process
Do:
Use AI as a supportive tool, not a replacement
Ask AI to help tidy up your writing or clarify structure
Use it to brainstorm examples, then rewrite them in your own voice
Reflect on AI suggestions and adapt them to match your experience
Use AI to help with research, but express your understanding yourself
Don’t:
Copy and paste AI-generated content directly into your application
Let AI exaggerate or invent experience you do not have
Rely on generic statements that don’t reflect the specific role requirements
Remove your individuality, we want to hear your voice
Stay Safe When Applying
To protect yourself from recruitment scams, please only apply for roles through the official greater.jobs website and associated recruitment systems. We will never ask for your personal information outside of this process.
