The public sector is facing unprecedented risks and challenges. 

Apart from the pressing need to achieve significant savings in public expenditure, there are a range of obligations and constraints directly affecting their services to the public, their staff and their capital assets. They face increasing demands on their services as well as increasing public expectations on the standard of those services. They have to demonstrate best value in the delivery of services with performance and risk management being key issues. They also have to balance political aspirations with economic realities. There has never been a greater need for innovation, fresh ideas and new ways of working together.

So what has any of this to do with private sector lawyers? All government and public sector bodies operate within a statutory framework so in-house lawyers play a key role in compliance, scrutiny and risk management. The legal needs of each authority should be related to their corporate plan and objectives and each authority should be able to demonstrate best value in the delivery of legal services. In our view, that means a legal service which is necessary, relevant, effective, efficient, timely, fit for purpose and able to add value as well as allocating risk appropriately.

Perhaps the silver lining of this recession is that the boundaries of the three sectors have become increasingly integrated. Partnership working and a shared approach to service delivery are essential to meet legal requirements and budgetary constraints. There has never been a better time to exploit the best of both worlds.

Our Government and Public Sector team has in-depth experience working with a wide range of public sector organisations including central and devolved government, non-departmental public bodies, local authorities, further and higher education establishments, NHS agencies and housing associations. Our clients value our pragmatic and direct approach to deliver cost-effective advice that adds value. We value the opportunity to work in partnership with our public sector clients and their in-house teams to deliver best value legal services that help to manage risk throughout the organisation.