Northumberland County Council are seeking to appoint three new Assistant Coroners to support the Senior Coroner in Northumberland across the full range of coroner duties in order to deliver a high-quality coroner service to the people of Northumberland.

Successful candidates, if not already an Assistant Coroner, will be required to attend a mandatory Assistant Coroner Induction training course on 2-3 December 2025.

About the post:

Northumberland County Council is looking for exceptional candidates with excellent proven organisational, management and efficiency skills, as well as experience of exercising sound judgement and communicating effectively. You will work closely with the Senior Coroner for Northumberland to ensure the running of an efficient coroner service that puts the bereaved at the heart of its service.

You will be required to demonstrate knowledge and experience of Coronial law and of basic medicine, have proven skills in conducting investigations and an understanding of court procedure. You will also need to demonstrate the excellent communication and interpersonal skills necessary to deal with sensitive situations.

The successful candidates will be required to carry out the duties and responsibilities of a coroner as defined in the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 and associated rules and regulations and as further described in various guidance issued by the Chief Coroner.

These are fee paid positions although they are likely to involve a regular commitment, which is to be agreed between the Assistant Coroner, Senior Coroner and the Local Authority. You will be expected on occasion to be available to assist on an out of hours rota system..

It is a Coroner's personal responsibility (and not that of his/her clerk/secretary) to ensure that they sit when possible. The Chief Coroner and the Lord Chancellor would expect an Assistant Coroner to offer a minimum of 20 sitting days each financial year (in line with the Chief Coroner's Model Coroner Area 2nd Edition July 2020).

The successful candidate will be a barrister or a solicitor or Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives and satisfy the judicial-appointment eligibility condition which means they will have 5 years of experience whilst holding that qualification. They will be under the age of 70 and be subject to the appointment and eligibility conditions within the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (s.23 and Schedule 3).

Salary - fee paid, £502.00 per day. [in line with the JNC Coroners Circular 69]