General Counsel
Permanent
Full time (34.5 hours),, we are open to a conversation about how you work these hours
Location: Split between home and our London Office (with at least 2 days based in the office each week)
Salary Range: £116,000 - £124,000
About us
At Macmillan you'll find talented people working together to do whatever it takes to support people living with cancer. We're going all out to find even better ways to help even more people who need our support. Our values are at the heart of who we are and everything we do, inspiring our thinking and guiding our actions.
About the role:
As Macmillan’s General Counsel, you will lead all legal, governance and regulatory activity across the organisation. You’ll act as our principal legal adviser, ensuring we operate with integrity and confidence while delivering maximum impact for people living with cancer.
Strategic Legal Leadership
* Advise the Chief Executive, Executive Team and Board on legal, governance and risk matters
* Provide expert legal guidance across contracts, employment, IP, data protection and regulatory compliance
* Lead legal input into transformation, mergers, partnerships and major organisational initiatives
* Oversee safeguarding, serious incident reporting and regulatory investigations
* Apply commercial judgement to balance opportunity and risk
Risk, Compliance & Regulatory Oversight
* Design and embed Macmillan’s risk and information governance frameworks
* Maintain organisational risk appetite, reporting and assurance
* Ensure compliance with GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, PECR and ISO27001
* Oversee risk registers, business continuity and crisis management
* Lead whistleblowing, complaints, investigations, insurance and indemnities
Contract & Commercial Management
* Shape commercial models and partnership structures
* Draft, review and negotiate contracts, grants and partnership agreements
* Strengthen contract management systems and templates
Ethics, ESG & Stakeholder Engagement
* Lead Macmillan’s ethics and integrity framework
* Provide oversight of data ethics and responsible technology use
* Support ESG priorities and represent Macmillan with regulators and sector bodies
Team Leadership & Organisational Impact
* Lead and develop the Legal and Governance team
* Build organisational legal literacy through training and guidance
* Manage departmental planning and budgets
* Ensure early legal involvement in organisational projects
About you
We’re looking for someone who:
* Is an experienced senior lawyer with broad commercial, regulatory and governance expertise
* Has a strong track record advising Boards and Executive Teams
* Brings sound commercial judgement and a balanced approach to risk
* Understands data protection, compliance and sector‑specific regulation
* Has significant experience negotiating complex contracts and partnerships
* Demonstrates strong ethical judgement and commitment to integrity
* Is an inclusive, inspiring leader who develops high‑performing teams
* Communicates with clarity and influence at all levels
* Thrives in a collaborative, fast‑moving environment
Recruitment Process
Application deadline: Sun 15th Feb 2026
First interview dates: Early - mid March 2026
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed.
We welcome applications from everyone who meet the criteria and strongly encourage individuals to apply who have a disability, impairment or health condition or individuals who identify as Black, Asian or from another minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Macmillan. Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy here along with our internal employee representation body, ‘Our Voice’ and 8 Employee Network groups help us promote fairness and belonging, becoming an engaged and inclusive organisation for all our people.