Join Our Dynamic Team! Be a Non-Executive Board Member at West College Scotland!

Are you passionate about education, community development, and making a positive impact? West College Scotland (WCS) is looking for enthusiastic, dedicated individuals with enquiring minds to join our leadership team as Non-Executive Board Members.

Why West College Scotland?

At West College Scotland, we believe in using the transformative power of education, learning and skills to unlock people’s potential and enable their success – with around 24,000 students every year trusting WCS to support them on their learning journeys.

Our students are at the heart of everything we do, with West College’s team working to help transform people’s lives, to equip them for the world of work, and to provide them with the knowledge and skills that will enable them to make positive contributions to their communities.

As a Non-Executive Board Member, you will play a crucial role in helping steer our college to sustained success. With a commitment to innovation, community, and business engagement, WCS is a hub of inspiration and opportunity - teaching today, to provide the workforce of tomorrow.

Your Chance to Make a Difference!

As a Board Member, you will have the unique opportunity to contribute your expertise, ideas, and passion to influence the strategic direction of West College Scotland. Your insights will shape and guide strategies, drive initiatives, and through good governance ensure that we continue to provide the highest quality education for our students, the best possible workplace for our 1000-strong team and be a fantastic business partner.

Diverse Perspectives Welcome!

Respect is at the core of who we are. We value diversity and inclusion, and we believe that a range of perspectives, walks of life and cultures makes us stronger. Whether you come from a background in education, business, or community development, your unique experiences and skills may be what WCS is looking for.

You may never have considered a Board position before, but your knowledge and ideas may be invaluable to us and could be a great opportunity for you to enhance your network and your own skills. WCS is especially keen to hear from those groups currently under-represented on Boards of Scottish public bodies, such as those from black, Asian, and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, people aged under-50 and women. It is not essential that you live/work in areas where our campuses are based.

An Innovative, Collaborative and Supportive Environment!

Being a part of West College's Board means becoming a valued member of a collaborative team, choosing to undertake change and development to create value for our students, team and partners. It’s a chance to engage in meaningful discussions, exchange ideas, and work with other professionals to create an environment that fosters growth and success.

Do you have a background in Fundraising or Philanthropy and a passion for the role of research in achieving social good? Are you seeking a new, exciting challenge?

The University of Glasgow has been changing the world for six centuries, and today we are one of the world's top 100 universities. Our social scientists are at the heart of our world-changing mission, striving to understand how socially just outcomes can be brought about in our rapidly changing global context, and partnering with policy makers, businesses and civil society to bring about progressive change.

We are now looking for a Philanthropic Bid Development Manager to join the College of Social Science, in a new partnership with the University’s Development and Alumni team, to raise funds to support social science research.

In the next decade, the University of Glasgow aims to be synonymous with discoveries, innovations and leadership of global importance; a university characterised by the closeness of our community, the strength of our connections and the incredible potential unleashed by our collaborative spirit. Our world-class social scientists are thought-leaders in their fields, creating shared, holistic understandings of global issues and advocating for positive social change.

The role of Philanthropic Bid Development Manager will be vital to fulfilling the potential of our social science to change the world.

We are seeking someone with shared purpose, shared values and the desire to make a difference, who will harness the power of the University’s worldwide community to develop an ambitious and sustainable fundraising programme for social science research.

You will possess exceptional relationship management skills, experience of working with Trusts and Foundations, and have a demonstrable track record in achieving financial targets. We also welcome applications from people with relevant transferable skills who can demonstrate knowledge of philanthropy and a belief in the power of research to change the world.

This post is full time (35 hours per week) and fixed term for up to 3 years in the first instance. Relocation assistance will be provided where appropriate.

College of Social Sciences

Edinburgh University Students' Association is looking to recruit for the Head of Student Opportunities to join our Student Opportunities team.

Edinburgh University Students’ Association is an award-winning organisation, which exists to provide diverse services, representation, and welfare support to the community of over 49,500 students at the University of Edinburgh. By providing opportunities, helping to create change and offering support, we're here to help students get the most out of their time in Edinburgh.

The Student Opportunities team supports over 300 student-led societies; encourages a range of volunteering opportunities for students to participate in; and manages the Peer Learning and Support programme across the University.

We are a registered charity and all the income we generate from our commercial activity goes back in to supporting our members. We’re also an organisation with a strategic commitment to support and empower all our staff, and have some exciting plans for the future. There's never been a better time to apply and join our organisation.

We are an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons. Edinburgh University Students’ Association is committed to promoting equal opportunities in employment and encouraging equality, diversity and inclusion among our workforce, and eliminating unlawful discrimination.

We are looking for an experienced manager with a positive and enthusiastic outlook. They will be experienced in supporting a diverse range of volunteers and developing them through their volunteering journey, as well as being skilled in successful transformation projects within a member/volunteer led organisation. They will have demonstrable experience in managing the delivery of co-curricular and extra-curricular student opportunities.

The ideal candidate will contribute to our strategic commitment to support and help build student communities, as well as support students’ personal and professional development. To do this, they will be responsible for achieving the Student Associations’ ambitious plans around increasing engagement and interaction with student leaders and volunteers. This will require prior experience in developing and delivering cross-departmental projects, as well as proven success in engaging with key stakeholders to inform planning and decision making.

Please see the Job Description & Person Spec PDF for more information.

The official purposes of Earth in Common (EiC), a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SC044220), can be summarised as to encourage and support the people and organisations of Leith to grow food vegetables, and flowers for pollinating insects, in urban spaces, in order to improve health and wellbeing, community cohesion and the environment. However, EiC brings together a diverse group of enthusiastic staff, freelancers, volunteers and members/supporters who are tackling an array of social and environmental issues at local, national and international levels, and so it has broader activities and interests than suggested by its current official purposes.

The charity was appointed by the City of Edinburgh Council to manage, with and for the local community, two acres at the northwest corner of Leith Links Park. Now known as Leith Community Croft (LCC), our pioneering and model ‘urban croft’ offers cross-cutting solutions to social and environmental problems through a suite of integrated projects. It accommodates a community growing project with >100 participants. The growing project is distinct from allotments and benefits agrobiodiversity (see tinyurl.com/croftabdiv).

LCC is also the site of our tree nursery, market garden, composting facilities, our Hingabootery (shed-based café, with a serving hatch), our Market on the Croft (to be re-launched in 2023), and our lovely new building (largely funded by the Scottish Government’s Regeneration Capital Grant Fund), with a well-equipped kitchen, flexible meeting/training/dining spaces and office space. This building constitutes a multipurpose community hub at the core of LCC.

To learn more about EiC, candidates are advised to familiarise themselves with the organisation’s history and current projects and campaigns by visiting its website (earth-in-common.org). More information is also provided in the Job Description.

Summary of the job

• Appointees will work as a team with other Croft Café Co-ordinators, with a main focus on preparing and serving simple but high quality food and drink. They will also sell fruit and vegetables (many from our market garden on Leith Community Croft) from our farm shop area of the same building. Barista and/or kitchen experience would be preferable, but we can provide training to the right candidates. An understanding of food safety standards is essential as well as a proactive attitude, a sense of urgency and ability to pinpoint priorities and act on them.
• The appointees will also perform all necessary ancillary work (food preparation, cleaning, stocktaking, till operation, ordering supplies, etc.). Opening hours are currently 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday (subject to change during spring and summer), but there will be some meeting, preparation and cleaning time outside these hours, and possibly occasional catering at events. Candidates must be able to work weekends and early mornings.
• As well as ensuring the smooth running of all aspects of Earth in Common’s café and farm shop operations, they will assist with other aspects of running Leith Community Croft, as required. This may include, for example, waste management, litter-picking and assisting with market garden work.
• Croft Café Co-ordinators are expected to be flexible, use their initiative, and help each other as necessary, turning their hands to whatever needs to be done to further Earth in Common’s services and reputation. This includes contributing ideas to the development of café and farm shop operations to make them more biosphere- and customer-friendly and to improve profitability.
• Croft Café Co-ordinators are important public-facing representatives of Leith Community Croft and Earth in Common, and are expected to abide by the charity’s Code of Conduct, offer efficient and friendly service, also engage with people who don’t necessarily use the café, and be able to inform members of the public about the charity’s history, values, long-term vision and ongoing projects and services and direct them to Earth in Common contact points and colleagues as appropriate.
• While no guarantees can be given, it is hoped that the charity’s finances will allow contracts to be extended, assuming appointees have performed well.