Job Ref: DOH1257
Branch: DFT Operator
Location: London, Leeds and Birmingham
Salary/Benefits: Salary up to £86,613.91
Contract type: Permanent
Hours: Full Time
Hours per week: 37.5
Posted date: 30/07/2026
Closing date: 13/08/2026
About DFT Operator
Join Our Team at DFTO
DFTO is the government’s public sector rail owning group. Its purpose is to bring all currently privately-owned train operators into public ownership in advance of the creation of Great British Railways in 2027 - and deliver improvements in the here and now by unifying and integrating train operations under common public ownership.
DFTO has over 30,000 employees, runs over 8,500 services a day and delivers over 640 million customer journeys across its networks every year. 7,000 people joined the railway family in the last year
Major improvements are being delivered by DFTO train operators (TOCs) that are already under public ownership - these are LNER, Northern, TransPennine Express (TPE), Southeastern, South Western Railway (SWR), c2c, Greater Anglia and WM Trains.
We work closely with the DfT but operate independently with our own governance and leadership teams. Our priority is ensuring efficient, dependable rail services for everyone.
Primary Purpose of Job:
To assist the Regional General Counsel (TOCs) with providing legal support, oversight and strategic direction to multiple DFTO TOCs (“TOC Group”) to ensure the efficient, timely and risk mitigated provision of quality and commercially focused legal advice. The role holder will play a critical supporting role in safeguarding the reputation of the TOCs within the TOC Group and will provide assistance to facilitate compliance by the companies with all relevant legislation. The Senior Legal Counsel will report to the General Counsel for the TOG Group, and will assist with the management and supervision of the Legal Counsel and other developing members of the TOC Group legal team.
A TOC Group will, ultimately, consist of multiple DFTO TOCs, but in the early stages of the transition programme, a SLC may only have responsibility for one TOC. The composition of each TOC Group may change over time, and on more than one occasion, as the DFTO Group grows in size and to reflect wider business decisions in relation to the structure of the Group.
Key Competencies:
- Demonstrable experience of rail related legal and regulatory requirements
- Strong analytical skills and the ability to interpret complex legal and commercial documents
- Credible role modeller and ambassador of the DFTO culture/brand
- Consistently delivers on time and accurately.
- The ability to work independently and as part of a team.
- Dynamic can do attitude with the ability to find creative legal solutions and seek alternative options in challenging environments
- Track record of building strong relationships with the ability to engage, inspire and influence stakeholders
- Sound judgement, strong commercial acumen, resilience, and a balanced attitude to risk
- Experienced line manager
- Proficiency in identifying, assessing, and mitigating legal risks to protect companies from potential legal issues
Key Responsibilities:
General legal support and risk management
- Act as a key legal adviser for all agreed legal matters relating to the DFTO TOCs in the TOC Group, liaising closely with the General Counsel (TOCs) and other Senior Legal Counsel within the Group legal function to facilitate an aligned approach to the provision of legal advice.
- Identify and mitigate materially significant legal risks within the TOC Group, providing proactive advice and risk mitigations to senior management on legal issues.
- Provide high-level, professional and strategic legal advice, underpinned by quality and commercially focussed decision making, to the executive team and senior management of each TOC within the TOC Group.
- Research and prepare advice on a variety of legal matters, including consumer rights, railway regulations, public sector equality duty, procurement law, data protection, intellectual property and licensing, and competition law, delegating to and supervising Legal Counsel where appropriate.
- Assist the Regional General Counsel (TOCs) to maintain effective oversight of all agreed legal matters within the TOC Group and delegate appropriate matters to other legal team members and/or operational colleagues.
- Work closely and in collaboration with the Regional General Counsel (TOCs) on any other matters which require support.
Leadership
- Mentor, supervise, support and manage Legal Counsel or other developing members of the TOC Group’s legal team in their provision of all agreed legal support across the TOC Group’s TOCs, fostering a high-performance and collaborative culture.
- Support the Group Counsel (TOCs) to lead the TOCs and team members through legal challenges and high-stakes issues, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations
Strategic support
- Assist with the implementation of the TOC Group’s legal strategy.
- Actively participate in group-level legal initiatives, projects and reporting to facilitate strategic development of the Group legal function, including in relation to training and development.
Collaboration and stakeholder management
- Build relationships with senior managers of each TOC within the TOC Group, other stakeholders across the wider DFTO group, and with external stakeholders including DfT, Network Rail and external counsel.
- Work closely with other Senior Legal Counsel and the wider legal team to ensure consistency of legal approach across the DFTO Group and effective sharing and usage of best practice within the legal function.
Contract and commercial
- Draft, review, negotiate and advise on key commercial contracts across all areas of the TOC businesses, engaging and managing legal counsel where appropriate.
- Work closely with TOC contract managers, to provide advice in relation to contract management, enforcement and risk management processes.
- Provide advice on compliance with competition law and procurement rules.
Regulatory and compliance
- Proactively collaborate and advise on areas of public law, including the Freedom of Information Act, the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) and public law decision making requirements
- Provide advice on legal aspects of the Service Agreement with the Secretary of State for Transport
- Support subject matter experts within the DFTO Group compliance function and within TOC businesses, to facilitate adherence to data protection, health and safety, environmental and consumer protection laws. Dispute resolution
- Support litigation, arbitration and dispute resolution involving the TOCs, working with external legal counsel on high-risk cases.
- Work with the Regional General Counsel (TOCs) to develop strategies to minimise legal risks and facilitate effective resolution of disputes.
Corporate Governance and Board Support
- Support the Regional General Counsel (TOCs) with providing advice on corporate governance matters, including director duties and regulatory obligations.
Legal knowledge
- Maintain appropriate legal competency and knowledge, including by staying up-to-date with changes to legislation, particularly in relation to laws, rules and regulations that directly affect the business and the rail industry.
- Supported by Legal Counsel, review new legislation and assess its impact on the DFTO Group.
Knowledge, Skills, Experience Technical Qualifications:
- Educated to degree level or higher.
- Solicitor admitted to practice in England Wales with at least 6 years PQE with a reputable law firm/in house organisation
- Ability to explain complex legal and risk issues in accessible, plain English terms.
- Ability to demonstrate strong legal analytical skills.
- Ability to demonstrate effective persuasion and influencing skills.
- Ability to express, both in writing and verbally, complex legal concepts and commercial problems in a simplified manner without the loss of important nuance
- A proven track record of working at a high level, with experience of supporting strategic decision making.
- A strong team player, with a professional and collaborative approach, with the ability to build and maintain strong professional relationships across the businesses and with key external stakeholders (including the DfT and Network Rail).
- Managing stress, maintaining a positive attitude, remaining effective in dynamic environments and supporting the team through times of change.
- Ability to research effectively using platforms such as PLC/Lexis Nexis or other trusted sources.
- Ability to manage a varied workload and prioritise competing demands.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
- Proactive approach to work, with a willingness to ask for help and support as required.
Vacancy Details:
Duration: Permanent
Location: London Waterloo, Leeds or Birmingham
Salary: up to £86,613.91
Closing date: 13th Aug 2026
DFTO Benefits:
Annual Leave: Starting at 25 days and rising to an additional day per year of service completed within the first 5 completed years up to a maximum of 5 additional (30 days)
DC Pension Scheme: 10% Employer contribution, 5% Employee contribution
Opportunities to learn and network across the wider industry
Additional Information…
Disclaimer: Candidates applying for this position on a secondment basis must inform their line manager prior to submitting their application. This is to ensure transparency and facilitate any necessary discussions regarding workload and responsibilities.
About our people and the recruitment process - We're an inclusive employer of choice and we welcome applications from everyone! We encourage our colleagues to work flexibly, as we know traditional working patterns don't always fit. If you want to consider working flexibly, just let us know and we'll do our best to help and invest in your career with us, whilst you have a healthy work life balance.
Contact: If you have any questions or reasonable adjustments, please contact [email protected].
Please do not email any CV's to us, your application must be made by clicking the 'Apply' button.
