I qualified into and now work in the Legal Planning and Highways Team, where I’m responsible for managing my own caseload advising on highways, planning, and environmental matters. My work spans from the drafting and negotiating of planning and highways agreements, to making various orders under environmental and highways legislation, to advising on large scale regeneration projects. The work is very varied and I’m constantly being exposed to different areas of law – for example, I was recently instructed to stop up a highway which will include making an application before the Magistrates’ and conducting my own advocacy, which is ‘out of the usual’ in the planning/highways world as matters tend not to be heard in the courts as frequently as other sectors of law.

I like the dynamic of my relationship with my clients. Being in-house means all my clients are across the office from me or not too far away, which allows for a more fluid approach to working with one another. I also enjoy the political aspects of local government work generally, and as decisions for larger development proposals are made by Development Control Panel or Committee, this means awareness of the political balance of the Council itself is embedded into most of what we do.

In my specific area of planning, I like the concepts behind it: benefiting the wider community, facilitating development and placemaking. Planning has a positive and proactive role to play at the heart of local government, by stimulating development whilst balancing the social, economic and environmental needs of Milton Keynes. Whenever something is developed on a large scale within the borough, the wider community should benefit in accordance with MKC’s Development Plan and being part of this process driving forward the sustainable growth of Milton Keynes is a key factor for me. What’s more, although planning is considered a non-contentious area of law, it definitely lends itself to contentious elements, which can get very interesting!

I have a fantastic team around me and have felt valued since day one because my work facilitates decisions being made for the wider community. Even as a trainee, my input was valued and appreciated whilst rotating around different seats; it was rewarding to always feel part of the team and see the direct impact of my work that early on in my career, and I continue to do so now.

I am really pleased with what I’ve been exposed to and achieved at this early stage of my career, particularly when I contrast the opportunities that I’ve had as a trainee with the experiences shared by others in the private sector. I was responsible for my own caseload very early on, and this sense of ownership was pivotal in my development, as I began to trust myself more as a legal professional and increase my confidence.

For example, when I was a trainee during my seat in Litigation, I was able to carry out initial case assessment and investigation of Trading Standards, Taxi Enforcement and Hygiene and Food Safety matters  to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to prosecute, and that it is in the public interest to prosecute – essentially taking a similar role as the CPS. Thereafter I was responsible for the management of these cases, up to conducting court advocacy before the Magistrates. Having met a number of trainees both on the LPC and professional skills courses, I got the impression that this exposure was an exception rather than the norm – which in my opinion sets Local Authority training experience out from the rest of the sector.

Having wider recognition from those around me for my work is also something I treasure, particularly having won LLG Junior Lawyer of the Year in 2018 whilst I was a trainee solicitor.

Something that makes our work different is having to understand and be mindful of the political composition of local government, and how much politics influences the work we do. It also gives rise to unique areas of legal work, for example councillor conduct, standards and local authority governance. Being able to work closely with the Monitoring Officer and Deputy Monitoring Officer on these matters, particularly as a trainee, has been insightful and interesting – along with developing an understanding of the statutory nature of local government and its powers and responsibilities more generally.  

Another way local government legal practice can be distinguished from other types of practice, is that we’re directly working on behalf of the local community, on a not-for-profit basis, which gives rise to the feeling of truly making a difference. Being brutally honest, I wasn’t aware of council functions and responsibilities other than social services and bins and never gave any consideration to local government legal work. In reality, there are many full-fledged in-house legal services across the country providing advice on all social and commercial legal matters and handling litigation – all whilst working towards the shared goal of furthering a local authority’s ambitions in its respective defined area.

MKC agreed a Sustainability Strategy in 2019 that included a commitment to become a carbon neutral city by 2030 and carbon negative by 2050. In light of Covid-19, MKC has established a comprehensive Economic Recovery Plan inclusive of a £500k ‘Green Business Recovery Fund’ inviting local businesses to submit proposals which will; help create jobs and growth in green economy business sectors; support the development of green business practices that reduce carbon emissions;  and/or produce environmental benefit, for example, in biodiversity.

All reports to full council, cabinet, committees and delegated decisions now include a section which requires the author to explore energy efficiency implications on any given decision, which brings being more ‘green’ to the decision maker’s attention.

Further, being historically considered a ‘city for cars’, MKC has been at the forefront of transport innovations, including piloting the operation of delivery robots and autonomous driverless vehicles. I also recently worked on a project that tested the use of drones to carry out surveying for new development areas, which we’ve found could offer endless opportunities and initiatives to MKC to go more green. More subtly, MKC is home to over 200 miles of shared cycle and walking paths known as Redways, which it seeks to enhance and upgrade to create a more efficient commuter network, in order to reduce road traffic and get closer to its carbon commitments.