Location: North West (hybrid working available)
The Opportunity
An established and operationally complex organisation is seeking a Legal & Data Protection Manager to provide practical, commercially focused legal and compliance support across a wide range of business activities.
This is a hands‑on role combining commercial contracts, governance and data protection, offering real autonomy, visibility and stakeholder exposure. The successful candidate will act as a trusted internal adviser, embedding legal, contractual and GDPR best practice into day‑to‑day decision‑making.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide clear, pragmatic legal and compliance advice to procurement, projects and operational teams.
- Draft, review, amend and negotiate a broad range of commercial, supplier, framework and construction‑related contracts.
- Advise on risk allocation, liabilities and contractual disputes, including supplier challenges and claims.
- Support governance frameworks and ensure policies and processes remain legally compliant and up to date.
- Embed UK GDPR requirements into commercial and operational activities.
- Manage the full lifecycle of Data Subject Access Requests (DSARs).
- Lead Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) and identify proportionate mitigation strategies.
- Oversee data breach investigations, documentation and remediation actions.
- Maintain privacy documentation including privacy notices, policies and retention schedules.
- Liaise with external advisers, suppliers, contractors and public‑sector stakeholders where required.
- Line manage a Legal & Compliance Support Officer and contribute to data protection training across the business.
About You
You will be an experienced legal or compliance professional with a strong commercial mindset and the ability to balance legal risk with operational realities.
Key requirements include:
- Proven experience drafting and negotiating commercial contracts (exposure to construction contracts is desirable).
- Sound knowledge of compliance, governance and regulatory interpretation.
- Hands‑on experience delivering GDPR processes (DSARs, DPIAs, breach management and privacy documentation).
- Ability to communicate complex legal issues clearly to non‑legal stakeholders.
- Strong organisational skills with the confidence to manage competing priorities.
- Comfortable working autonomously within an in‑house environment.
Desirable but not essential:
- Experience with NEC and/or JCT contract forms.
- Data protection qualifications (e.g. CIPP/E, CIPM).
- Formal legal qualification (experience is valued over title).
Why Apply?
- Competitive salary of £55k-£60k
- Superb benefits package, including a final salary pension
- Broad, integrated legal role covering contracts, compliance and data protection
- High visibility and influence across a large, operational organisation
- Opportunity to shape governance and compliance frameworks
- Hybrid working and long‑term stability