Group Senior Legal Counsel

At Valeo Foods UK we bring together a family of much-loved UK food brands supported by the scale and ambition of a global investment partner. From Kettle’s bold crunch to Rowse’s natural sweetness, through to Matthew Walker and Barratt Sweets, our portfolio blends heritage, craft and category-leading innovation.

Alongside our branded portfolio, we are also one of the UK’s largest suppliers of private label products, partnering with major retailers to deliver quality and category expertise that meets the needs of millions of households every week.

As a business, we’re on a journey of transformation. We’re strengthening our operations, driving quality and investing in our people. It’s an exciting, fast-moving environment where heritage meets new thinking, and where every colleague contributes to shaping the future of food across the UK.

Join us and play your part in building the next chapter of some of Britain’s most loved brands.

This is a rare opportunity to join a fast‑growing, international consumer business at a genuinely formative point.

As our first incremental hire at Group Legal level, this role is about building as much as advising. You won’t be stepping into a fully‑formed function, you’ll help shape how Legal operates as the business scales, embedding smart, commercial legal support at the heart of decision‑making and growth.

From day one, you’ll work closely with our central teams across Procurement, IT, People, Finance/Treasury and ESG, alongside ad hoc support for our international divisions. It’s a hands‑on role, drafting and negotiating commercial, procurement and technology contracts, and helping teams move faster with clear, practical guardrails in place.

As we continue to grow through acquisition, you’ll also support M&A activity and post‑deal integration, helping translate deal intent into practical, scalable outcomes.

The scope goes well beyond transactions. You’ll contribute to governance frameworks, litigation oversight, delegations of authority, IP protection and regulatory awareness, as well as helping roll out workable compliance and data protection approaches in partnership with People and IT.

What truly sets this role apart is the chance to build. Working alongside our Group Head of Legal, you’ll help design legal intake and triage, create templates and playbooks, establish clause banks, and implement tools that allow Legal to scale efficiently, enabling self‑serve for low‑risk matters while keeping focus on what matters most.

We’re looking for a commercially minded, pragmatic lawyer who enjoys being close to the business and thrives in environments where not everything is fully defined. You’ll be comfortable switching between drafting, advising, designing processes and influencing stakeholders across functions and jurisdictions. You’ll care about outcomes, not perfection. Translating legal risk into clear, usable guidance that helps teams move faster and make better decisions.

You don’t need to have done everything before. If you bring strong commercial contracting experience, sound judgement, curiosity and a builder’s mindset, we’ll support you to grow into the full breadth of the role as the team evolves. Collaborative and clear in your communication, you’ll be someone who enjoys long‑term partnerships and takes pride in doing the right thing for the business, our brands and our people.

• Competitive Salary + Bonus + Car Allowance
• 25 days + Bank Holidays
• Matched pension scheme
• Private Medical Cover
• Death in service
• Retailer discount platform