Paralegal

Employment Paralegal

Location: Gloucester

Contract: Full time – Permanent, 40hrs per week, 8:30am – 5pm, Monday to Friday

Salary: Up to £34,000, plus company benefits

Mears Group PLC is a leading provider of housing and care services in the UK. With a strong emphasis on social responsibility and community well-being. Mears specialises in delivering housing solutions, maintenance services, and care support to a diverse client base. The group’s expertise encompasses responsive repairs, planned maintenance, and housing management, contributing to the overall improvement of living conditions for individuals and communities

We are seeking an experienced, well organised Paralegal in Employment Law with a strong background in legal administration to join our growing legal team and to provide essential support to the wider business.

The Role:

This Paralegal role is a pivotal position within the Employee Relations and Legal team, responsible for managing processes, preparing documents, drafting documentation on Employment Tribunal matters, liaising with witnesses, and attending Employment Tribunal hearings across the country as required.

Responsibilities:

• Maintain accurate diarisation of key dates, including limitation periods and tribunal directions, ensuring full compliance with procedural deadlines.
• Manage the Early Conciliation process, including liaising with ACAS and monitoring timelines through to resolution or escalation.
• Act as a point of contact for Employment Tribunals, ACAS, Counsel and other external parties, ensuring clear and timely communication.
• Prepare bundles and supporting documentation for Counsel and coordinate the disclosure process in line with legal requirements.
• Draft routine correspondence relating to Tribunal matters and proofread and amend legal documents to ensure accuracy and consistency.
• Prepare initial drafts of Grounds of Resistance for review.
• Liaise with witnesses to obtain statements, coordinate availability and support case preparation.
• Attend Tribunal hearings where required, providing administrative and case support.
• Draft COT3 agreements and support settlement discussions, including liaising with relevant parties to facilitate resolution.

Key Criteria:

• Experience in working within employment law or litigation law.
• Strong research skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office.
• Strong organisational skills.
• Confident handling a diverse and complex workload with tight deadlines.
• Familiarity with electronic document management and filing systems.
• Able to work with a high level of discretion with confidential matters.
• Up-to-date knowledge of legislation.
• Willingness to travel nationwide as required.

Due to the required travel, a Full UK Driving License would be beneficial.

The Benefits:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays (with ability to purchase additional annual leave after a minimum service levels)
• Hybrid working
• Pension Scheme
• Company Sick Pay
• Refer a friend scheme (total award £1000)
• Share saver scheme
• Eye test vouchers
• Employee Assistance Programme (Access to Free counselling service)
• Wellbeing service (Access to trained mental health & wellbeing advisors)
• Mears Annual Family Fun Day for you and your family to places like Drayton Manor, fully paid for including lunch
• Mears Rewards - A performance recognition platform whereby you can be rewarded in high street vouchers
• Volunteering Leave - Mears supports employees to undertake volunteering in the community, in support of our social value commitment

All our roles require candidates to have the entitlement to work within the UK, Mears does not currently offer visa sponsorship.

To drive a Mears vehicle, you must be aged over 21 have held your licence over 3 months and have less than 9 points.

Candidates should be aware that all our roles are subject to relevant Background, Identity & Security checks before commencement of employment.

Apply below or to discuss your application further; contact:

If you need any help with your application process, we are here to support you. We will be accessible every step of the way.

At Mears Group, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive, we are a Disability Confident employer, valuing individuality and ensuring equal opportunities for all.

We proudly support the Armed Forces Covenant and are honoured to have achieved the Gold Award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) to coincide with this, we hold an Endorser Award for the Career Transition Partnership, recognising our commitment to veterans transitioning into civilian careers.

In our continued effort to promote social mobility, we invite applicants to voluntarily share their background information during the application stages to help us better understand the diverse experiences of our candidates. This is to ensure we are committed to improving social mobility. We use the Social Mobility Index to assess and enhance opportunities for individuals from diverse backgrounds. These questions are optional and will not impact your ability to apply.