Post Title / Solicitor – Property / Conveyancing
Line Manager / Head of Legal
Location / Suttons Wharf South
Department/Team / Citystyle
Grade / 3
Budgetary Responsibility / No
Version Control / Version: 1 Date: August 2015
Job Purpose and Background
To be responsible to the Head of Legal for providing legal services to One Housing’s internal customers.
Citystyle is the commercial arm of One Housing managing all non-social property for One Housing including leasehold, shared ownership, private rented and commercial tenures. It also is responsible for a number of organisation wide functions including billing rents and service charges; managing third party arrangements and home purchase schemes. Citystyle also provides in-house legal services across One Housing and manages income collection across all tenures.
Principle Outputs & Responsibilities
- Responsible to provide day-to-day legal services on a range of property related matters and to ensure excellent customer focused legal services are provided to all of One Housing’s customers and clients.
- To carry and manage own caseload of various property related matters, including but not limited to general residential conveyancing, new plot sales, staircasings, resales, assignments, Preserved Right to Buy, Right to Acquire, Social HomeBuy, Void Sales, general property acquisitions and development advice.
- Draft and prepare various legal documents including Deeds, Licences, Lease Extensions, Transfers, Leases and any others documents as required.
- To work collaboratively with support staff within Legal Services to provide assistance, guidance and training where required.
- Update One Housing on any relevant legislative changes or new case law affecting any areas of legal services provided and carry out training sessions across One Housing as needed.
- Ensure all work carried out is to an exceptional standard, delivered in an accurate and timely manner and in line with regulatory requirements of the legal profession and legal compliance standards.
- Pro-actively engage and contribute to Legal Services and Citystyle, actively collaborating with other teams across One Housing to provide excellent customer service.
- Maintain an accurate record of income, savings and legal work in accordance with the recording requirements prescribed.
- Meet all targets set and any relevant corporate objectives.
- Pro-actively build excellent relationships with residents, customers and any internal or external stakeholders to ensure an outstanding legal service is provided.
- Provide an excellent legal service that is tailored around the customer. Service that is prompt, clear and reliable and shows an understanding of business context. Ensure a service that demonstrates value for money, is solution-focused and innovative.
Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience
- Be able to demonstrate post qualification experience.
- Have proven legal experience in the areas of residential property conveyancing and Landlord and Tenant.
- Demonstrate attention to detail, accuracy and excellent file management skills.
- Be computer literate, specifically Microsoft Word and Excel.
- Able to build effective links with all relevant stakeholders both within One Housing and externally.
- Be able to adapt to changes, new business opportunities and managing customer relationships.
- Commitment to delivering exemplary customer service.
- Experience of operating in a commercial environment and demonstrating value for money.
Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience
- Have knowledge and/or experience in most or all of Legal Services Team’s legal service areas.
- Project management and team management experience.
- Business development, innovation and set up.
Professional Qualifications and Membership
- Must be a qualified Solicitor and member of the Law Society of England and Wales.
- Hold a valid Practicing Certificate issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Decision Making Accountability
- Work closely with the Head of Landlord Services and Legal Services Team customers and One Housing customers to ensure excellent customer service and delivery of targets and corporate plan objectives.
Other Duties
- Ensure that responsibilities for Health and Safety are properly understood and discharged as defined in One Housing Group’s Health & Safety Policy and that Health & Safety concerns are promptly and clearly communicated to the appropriate people.
- Comply fully with One Housing Groups policies and procures including the standing orders and financial regulations.
- Comply with the Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy
- Comply with the data protection act (all employees will not disclose or make use of for their private advantage any information held on record which is not available to the public)
- To carry out any other reasonable duties as required
Behaviours Framework
Collaboration /
- We proactively share relevant knowledge, information and updates with colleagues, customers and partners.
- We work well with anyone respecting their individual style.
- We take responsibility for an issue at the first point of contact and take ownership of facilitating the best solution for our customers across different internal OHG departments.
Engagement /
- We pay attention and listen to our customers, we acknowledge their views, we make sure we understand how we can best help them, and we anticipate their needs as much as we can.
- We do our best to maintain positive relationship even when others are frustrated, stressed or angry.
- We are approachable, open-minded and we care about finding a solution with our customers that ensures everybody can support it.
Excellence /
- We focus on getting the basics right, and deliver what we promise on time, swiftly and efficiently at the point of initial contact, to our service standards and within required regulation.
- We aim to be the best, and are determined to deliver over and above our customers’, colleagues’ and partners’ expectations in depth and in breadth. When we deliver anything, we ask ourselves: what else can we do to wow our customer?
- We have a ‘value for money’ mindset – do everything to the best of our ability and creatively make the most of the resources we have available to us.
Respect /
- We pay attention to other people’s wants and needs, and take these into account when working towards a solution.
- We treat everyone equally in a courteous, honest and open manner.
Ambition /
- We challenge ourselves every day to be the best we can be, and to do what we do in a better and more efficient way.
- We are passionate and committed to the goals we share with everyone in our teams and the whole of OHG; and when things sometimes get difficult we remind ourselves that we are all one team and are working towards the same ambition.
Progression Pathway
In order to prepare for a potential progression to Legal Services Manager or Head of Legal role the following additional skills/qualifications would have to be developed/acquired:
- Have knowledge and/or experience in most or all of Legal Services Team’s legal service areas.
- Project management and team management experience.
- Business development, innovation and set up.
Collaboration / Engagement / Excellence / Respect / Ambition