Job reference 339609
Senior Legal Advisor - Planning
Competitive salary plus £5,500 car allowance, healthcare, 18% annual bonus potential, 27.5 days annual leave plus bank holidays rising with service and a company pension scheme with highly competitive contribution rates
Permanent, Full time or Part-time (4 days)
Sheffield or London, hybrid working, 4 days in office (as part of our DEI commitment we will review any exceptions that are submitted as part of the application process)
Royal Mail is looking for an experienced Senior Legal Advisor (Planning speciality) to join our Property & Planning Team within Group Legal & Compliance. This is a rare opportunity to work across one of the UK's most diverse operational estates, providing specialist planning advice that supports the operation of more than 1,700 properties and influences strategic decisions across the business.
About the Role
As a key member of the Property & Planning Team, you'll provide expert legal advice on a wide range of planning, highways and environmental matters. You'll work closely with Group Property, Out of Home, operational teams and senior stakeholders to manage risk, protect operational interests and support major development and infrastructure projects.
This is an excellent opportunity for a planning lawyer seeking a broad and varied workload, exposure to high-profile projects and the opportunity to make a tangible impact within a large, complex organisation.
Key Responsibilities
-
Advise on complex planning matters, development projects and strategic property initiatives across the Royal Mail estate.
-
Advising on all planning aspects of complex development projects, including major schemes in central London and planning applications involving permitted development rights, heritage and biodiversity considerations.
-
Advising on Royal Mail’s response to third-party developments impacting operations, including matters under the TCPA 1990, Planning Act 2008, TWA 1992 and hybrid bills such as HS2.
-
Providing planning support for acquisitions, disposals, strategic projects (including Out of Home), responding to planning enforcement matters, and advising on objections to CPOs and settlement agreement negotiations.
-
Advising on highways matters, including agreements and licences, stopping-up applications, statutory undertaker notices, and responses to highway works and proposed network changes.
-
Advising on environmental compliance, nuisance allegations, incidents, audits and corporate policies; supporting Royal Mail’s ESG and Public Affairs teams on consultations and strategic government engagement.
About You
You are a commercially minded planning lawyer who enjoys working on complex and varied matters. You combine strong technical expertise with the ability to build relationships, influence stakeholders and deliver practical solutions that balance legal risk with business objectives.
You thrive in fast-paced environments, enjoy working across multiple projects and are motivated by the opportunity to make a visible impact.
What You'll Bring
-
Qualified solicitor, barrister or equivalent legal professional.
-
Minimum 5 years' post-qualification experience in planning law, gained either in private practice or within a large organisation.
-
Experience advising on planning matters, judicial review proceedings and planning risk management.
-
Knowledge of highways agreements, including Section 106, Section 278 and Section 38 agreements.
-
Strong stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence outcomes across a wide range of business areas.
-
Excellent organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities effectively.
-
Environmental law or ESG-related experience would be advantageous.
Role Impact
This role plays a critical part in protecting and enhancing Royal Mail's operational estate, supporting major strategic projects and ensuring the business can respond effectively to planning, infrastructure and environmental challenges. You'll work on matters that have a direct impact on operations, future growth and long-term sustainability.
Extra Benefits
Family friendly support - enhanced maternity pay, paternity leave, adoption leave and shared parental leave- Supportive and generous company sick pay
- Funded Dental – As a manager you are eligible to a level of employer funded dental insurance*
- Health Assessment – As a manager you are eligible to an employer funded health assessment every 2 years*
- Benefits Account – You will have access to your personal benefits account on our ‘My Bundle+’ platform. There are more than 800 retail offers to help you save on things like groceries, days out, holidays and your household bills as well as employer provided and voluntary benefits to suit your lifestyle.
- Your Wellbeing - you and your family have 24/7 access to services and tools to help you get the most out of life. From your physical and mental health to financial and social support and advice. It’s free, and it’s for everyone.
- Available only to permanent employees
Next Steps
The next stage of the selection process will be an intial call with the hiring manager. We plan to hold interviews on w/c 13th July.
Trust is the foundation of Royal Mail. We aim to be transparent about the qualities we seek and what a career with us entails, building trust from the start of your journey with us. Your interview is the first step, and we want you to shine. To help you prepare, we’ll provide your interview questions in advance, so you can have your best examples ready. At Royal Mail Group, we value trust and our people.
We understand that candidates may not meet all the criteria for the role. If your experience is different, but you have relevant skills we’d love to hear from you.
Royal Mail Group is committed to inclusion and representing the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all individuals. As a proud Gold signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant, we especially encourage applications from the Armed Forces community, including cadet instructors and spouses/partners.
We are committed to ensuring an inclusive recruitment process. If you require any adjustments to support you during the hiring process, please discuss these with your recruiter when contacted.
We are Forces family friendly and a Gold signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant. We welcome applications from ex-Armed Forces personnel, reservists, veterans, cadet instructors and military spouses/partners.
For more information on Royal Mail Group and our values please click here: https://www.internationaldistributionsservices.com/en/about-us/
Closing Date: 5th July. Please note, this advert may close early if the appropriate number of applications has been reached.
#LI-Hybrid #LI-POST #LIMRT
