Welcome

Introduction
When someone is about to purchase a property - either a building or a piece of land - their solicitor requests a local land charges search from the council.  The results of a land charges search show a buyer if there are any matters relating to the property or land, which affects it such as a public footpath crossing it, or proposed road building plans.  Land charges officers are responsible for obtaining the all the relevant information from different council departments and passing it on to solicitors.

Work Environment
Land charges officers are mainly office based and normally work a standard 37-hour week.

Daily Activities
Local land charges services are responsible for maintaining the Land Charges Register and for carrying out local land charges searches.  A full search consists of two parts:

• the first highlights registerable charges, for example financial charges (registered against the property by the local council), improvement grants, tree preservation orders, conditional planning consents and agreements;
• the second reveals issues such as road building schemes, the planning history of the property and various notices which affect the property.

Land charges officers are involved in all aspects of this work including:

• keeping a record of search requests that arrive on a daily basis;
• gathering information from and updating the Land Charges Register;
• conducting more detailed research and requesting information from other council departments;
• liaising with other councils in the local area;
• dealing with the fees paid for land charges searches;
• using GIS systems and other computerised and written records to collate all the relevant information;
• double checking search information and passing it on to solicitors;
• meeting with members of the public who want to conduct personal searches;
• supervising land charges assistants and delegating some of the more routine work.

Skills & Interests
Land charges officers need to be:

• organised and methodical;
• accurate, with great attention to detail; 
• able to use computerised systems, with good keyboard skills; 
• able to communicate with a range of people, with a good a good telephone manner and customer care skills; 
• knowledgeable about the council's geographical area; 
• able to work to tight deadlines and remain calm under pressure; 
• able to work well as part of a team.

Entry Requirements
There are no set entry requirements, but you may require a minimum of four GCSEs/S Grades including English and maths.  Some councils may ask for previous experience working in a land charges office or some knowledge of the land charges search process.  You may have the opportunity to study for N/SVQs in land registration.

Future Prospects & Opportunities
There may be opportunities to progress to more senior and managerial roles.  With additional qualifications and training you may be able to develop into other areas of legal work within the council, or possibly into planning and development control.

Further Information & Services
Asset Skills www.assetskills.org
Country Land & Business Association www.cla.org.uk
Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation www.irrv.org.uk
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors www.rics.org.uk
The Association of Commons Registration Authorities www.acraew.org.uk

You may find further information about this area of work through Careers Wales (www.careerswales.com/) or in your local library, careers office or school careers library.