Legal Ombudsman
Posted by: GatenbySanderson
Employed By: Legal Ombudsman
Job Title: Legal Ombudsman
Salary: c.£145,000
Contract: Full-time
Location: Birmingham at least 20% of the working week
Application Deadline: 17.00 on Wednesday 1st October 2025
About the role
As an independent body, LeO’s role is to provide consumers with a service that is modern, responsive and efficient. At the heart of this is the need to give people confidence in the services they use at the most significant points in their life - buying a new house, dealing with a separation and access to children, dealing with employment disputes. Our work is varied, and we deliver our services in a multi-faceted and rapidly changing external landscape through our team of over 280 staff and with a total budget expenditure of just under £16m. We have been on a real journey in recent years and, with our current Chief Ombudsman, Paul McFadden, taking up a new role as the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, he leaves a more resilient, responsive and effective organisation performing well on its key metrics in support of consumers.
We are seeking an exceptional leader to join us in continuing this journey, building on the good work done with a focus on the future and without a hint of complacency. You will build effective and fruitful relationships across our stakeholder community, working closely with government, the legal sector and consumers to ensure that our unique insight and constructive feedback drives improvements in the delivery of legal services. Unless LeO has good and valued people it will not be able to deliver the quality of service that is necessary, and we are looking for a Chief Ombudsman who is committed to both performance and people, ensuring that a positive and inclusive culture remains at the heart of LeO’ work.
You will bring a track record of achievement working at board level in a complex organisation, together with the proven ability to inspire and motivate diverse teams and nurture talent. You will bring a demonstrable track record of challenging, persuading and influencing at the highest levels in government, regulators, business leaders, the media and with a range of other cross-sector audiences. Whilst not essential, a knowledge of, and senior level networks within, the Legal Services and Ombudsman sectors would be an advantage. This will be a demanding role and you will need to demonstrate high levels of personal resilience in managing competing pressures. You will bring outstanding judgement and the ability to engender a culture of achievement and continuous improvement. Politically astute, with a demonstrable commitment to high standards of public service delivery, you will be a collaborative team builder, with outstanding interpersonal, communication and influencing skills and the credibility and authority to take on a key national strategic leadership position, which offers the unique opportunity to take an organisation through the next challenging, but critical stage in its development.
Please note, the Chief Ombudsman must be Lay as defined in Schedule 1 paragraphs 2(4) and (5) of the Legal Services Act 2007, so cannot hold any form of legal qualification.
How to apply
To apply and for further details please click on Apply button. For a confidential discussion to explore the role and your suitability, please contact our recruitment partners, GatenbySanderson, via matt.malone@gatenbysanderson.com or Duncan.ewart@gatenbysanderson.com.