Summary

We are the public body that looks after England’s historic environment. We champion historic places, helping people understand, value and care for them.

Historic England have a fantastic opportunity for you to join us as our Solicitor/Legal Adviser.

This is a Full Time, Permanent post based in one of our following offices with hybrid working - York, Manchester, Birmingham, Swindon, Bristol, London or Cambridge.

£48,321 - £53,793 per annum

National - £48,321 per annum

Cambridge - £52,023 per annum

Inner London - £53,793 per annum

We offer a wide benefits package including a competitive defined benefit pension scheme to which we make 28.97% employer contributions, a generous 28 days holiday, corporate discounts, free entry into English Heritage sites across the country and development opportunities to ensure you achieve your goals.

To view our full range of benefits please follow the link here.

What you will be doing

As our Solicitor/Legal Adviser, you will proactively provide commercial and pragmatic legal advice on a range of legal issues to all who need it in Historic England and through our shared services agreement with English Heritage.

You will provide an efficient and professional service, carry out all matters within timescales agreed with the client and build effective working relationships with both internal and external stakeholders. Keep up-to-date with relevant legislation and prepare (as needed) precedent documents. Provide compliant, informed advice that is in accordance with the organisation’s policies and risk appetite.

Who we are looking for

• Experience in general commercial law (such as general commercial contract, commercial partnerships and collaborations, MoUs, etc. )

• Knowledge of other areas of law

• Capable of taking responsibility for own caseload 

• Willingness to be part of a small in-house team and assist in other areas of law when required

• Ability to advise and deal confidently with a wide range of people 

Please note your application will be scored and assessed against the above criteria.

We are an equal opportunity employer which values diversity and inclusion. If you have a disability or neurodiversity, we would be happy to discuss reasonable adjustments to the job with you. Having won the Gold Award from MIND for workplace wellbeing in seven consecutive years, we also recognise the importance of a healthy work-life balance.

We are an inclusive employer and believe that flexible working options are for everyone. We want to make sure our working arrangements don’t prevent anyone from joining us because of their personal circumstances. We also want to provide you with the best balance in your home and work life that we can.

We are open to considering options including job sharing, part-time working, compressed hours working and different working locations, including hybrid working. Please visit our jobs pages or contact us to find out more.

Why work for Historic England

We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity for everyone. Diversity helps us to perform better and attract more people to support our work. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds.

We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and candidates with disabilities as they are underrepresented within Historic England at this level.

Historic England want all of our candidates to shine in the recruitment process. Please tell us what we can do to make sure you can show us your very best self. You can contact us by email at recruitmentTeam@Historicengland.org.uk if you have any recruitment queries. 

At Historic England we use a hiring system called Applied. Applied is a behavioural science-backed recruitment platform that reduces bias, improves quality of hire and increases diversity. We do not use CV application for the majority of our hiring processes. You will answer a selection of questions that allow our hiring teams to test your skills and suitability for the role.

At Historic England, we value the expertise and individuality each candidate brings and want to hear about this in your own words. If you require the use or AI tools or other resources to support your application, we ask that all information is factually accurate, original, and reflects your own experience. To best represent yourself, we encourage you to write in your own words and use AI-generated content only as inspiration—not as direct input.

Provisional interview dates: week commencing 24th February 2026 in person in London.

Please follow the link for a full copy of the Job Description –

https://historicengland.org.uk/media/fovho40q/solicitor-legal-adviser.odt