Who Cares? Scotland is Scotland’s only national independent membership organisation for Care Experienced people. Our mission is to secure a lifetime of equality, respect, and love for Care Experienced people in Scotland and we currently have over 3500 Care Experienced members.

At the heart of Who Cares? Scotland’s work are the rights of Care Experienced people, and the power of their voices to bring about positive change. We provide individual lifelong relationship-based independent advocacy and a broad range of imaginative participatory and engagement opportunities for Care Experienced people across Scotland. We work alongside Corporate Parents and communities to broaden understanding and create change. We work with policy makers, leaders, and elected representatives locally and nationally to shape law, policy, and practice, working together to build on the aspirations of The Promise and secure positive change.

This unique role offers the opportunity to listen to and work directly with children and young people with experience of care, in an individual relationship-based advocacy role, and within participation and group activity across Shetland.

The post-holder will be a key member of the Advocacy and Participation team, supporting young people from across Shetland to ensure their rights are upheld and their voices are heard. These roles offer the opportunity to provide independent advocacy, children’s rights, and participation opportunities for children and young people who are looked after, Care Experienced, or subject to formal processes and structures. You will actively participate in child plan meetings, children’s hearings, and other formal processes, as well as assisting children and young people to prepare for them. In partnership with other professionals, carers, and organisations, you will help to achieve the best outcomes for children and young people by keeping detailed records of the work you undertake, writing liaison reports, and monitoring statistics.

As a vital part of the work of Who Cares? Scotland, these roles include facilitating group opportunities for and with children and young people across Shetland. This includes providing engagement and participation opportunities throughout the Who Cares? Scotland local and national network, as well as meeting with care experienced children and young people to introduce the service in agreement with the local authority. Raising awareness of Who Cares? Scotland and its services with children, young people, professionals, and carers you will also be responsible for facilitating training amongst corporate parents.

The right candidates for these posts will be able to form positive relationships with children and young people and have good interpersonal skills which demonstrate compassion, empathy and understanding for lived experience. You will be confident communicating with individuals and groups, both in written and verbal format, with the ability to adapt to a wide range of contexts. You will work autonomously, prioritizing and managing your own diary to meet organizational and young people’s needs. You will be able to evidence your work and keep accurate records of advocacy interventions taken. You will take enjoyment from working collaboratively with partners, believing in equal opportunities and inclusive working.

Committed to children’s rights, you know that all young people can make transformative change happen in their lives if given the opportunity. You will demonstrate knowledge of the current structure, developments, policy, and practice in relation to children and young people experiencing care in Scotland. Flexibility is a must, and some evening and weekend work, including occasional overnights, may be required, along with a full driving licence and access to transport.

While we would welcome the knowledge gathered through relevant qualifications, we are just as interested in relevant work experience. We welcome and encourage applications from those with experience of care.

The successful candidates will be joining Who Cares? Scotland and working within the North team at an exciting time, when the voices of those who are in or have experienced care are growing in power, individually and collectively - bringing with them insight, challenge, hope and change.

If this role sounds like the opportunity for you, we would love to hear from you.

This is an exciting opportunity to join our Regional Family Support Team in the East of Scotland and work to ensure the delivery of high-quality support to people who have a family member in prison.

We are looking for a Regional Family Support Coordinator to join our team in the East of Scotland. In this position you will play a crucial role in supporting families affected by imprisonment who live in Edinburgh, Lothians and Scottish Borders and pro-actively engaging with external partners through different means to deliver Families Outside’s key messages to ensure everyone is recognising the needs of families affected by imprisonment.

The Regional Family Support Coordinator will be responsible for supporting families, including children and young people at home and in their community via 1:1 work, to address the social and family adversities that people who have a family member in prison face, so they feel engaged, supported, and empowered. Whilst supporting children to ensure they are safe, healthy, included, and achieving at home, school, and in the community.

Primary responsibilities will include:

• Engaging with prison staff, attending meetings and family events at HMP Edinburgh.
• Providing support to families affected by imprisonment who live in Edinburgh, Lothians, and Scottish Borders.
• Engaging with Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs) in relevant surrounding areas including Edinburgh, Lothians, and Scottish Borders.
• Creating links with other organisations working in those areas outlined above.
• Collaborative working with Barnardo’s, at HMP Edinburgh Prison Visitors’ Centre.

About You

With experience of supporting and working alongside families, including children and young people the Regional Family Support Coordinator will be able to demonstrate that they are passionate about developing and delivering a quality service that is focused on the rights of families affected by imprisonment in their work and all they do.

We are looking for motivated and enthusiastic individuals who are passionate about making a difference for families impacted by imprisonment. If you can demonstrate a strong understanding and commitment to our organisational values, we want to hear from you.

Staff Benefits

• 25 flexible leave days plus 10 public holidays
• 4% matched contribution workplace pension scheme
• Hybrid & flexible working
• Employee Assistance Programme (Health Assured)
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Laptop and mobile phone for all staff

Birthlink Redress is in partnership with Scottish Government to support people to identify and source historical records and to compile as part of the Redress Support service.

MAIN TASKS & RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. To undertake administrative and practical tasks in order to access records on behalf of applicants by submitting Subject Access Requests to Data controllers including follow up and up-dating applicants on any progress.
2. To support people, taking a trauma-informed approach, who have experienced historical abuse in a care setting as children in Scotland to access their records, compile any received, create a chronology ready for forwarding to Redress Scotland.
3. To deliver a professional support service in accordance with Birthlink’s procedures and standards.
4. Liaise with appropriate local authorities, statutory or voluntary organisations to access records.
5. To record, monitor and evaluate all work.
6. To represent Birthlink in a professional and collaborative way in all multi-disciplinary meetings and events
7. To deliver training and information on the work of the project as required
8. To contribute to dissemination of information about Birthlink through professional journals, conferences and Birthlink’s bi-annual bulletin
9. To attend supervision, team meetings and training as appropriate and take responsibility for your own professional development.
10. To work within Birthlink’s policies and procedures including equal opportunities, anti-discriminatory practice, safeguarding and user participation
11. To keep up to date with changes in procedure, legislation, and research as they affect the service.

About the role:

Enquire is the Scottish advice service for additional support for learning. The service is funded by the Scottish Government and managed by Children in Scotland.

Our goal is to help parents, carers, professionals and children and young people understand pupils’ rights to extra support in school and early years settings. Our vision is that all children in Scotland are supported, included, and listened to throughout their education.

We are looking for an experienced and caring adviser whose primary responsibility will be responding to helpline enquiries. The right candidate will have excellent listening skills and be able to explain complex information in a clear and concise way, both over the telephone and in writing.

An understanding of the issues affecting children and young people with additional support needs and their families and knowledge of the Scottish education system would be an advantage.

About Children in Scotland

Giving all children in Scotland an equal chance to flourish is at the heart of everything we do.

By bringing together a network of people working with and for children, alongside children and young people themselves, we offer a broad, balanced and independent voice. We create solutions, provide support and develop positive change across all areas affecting children in Scotland. We do this by listening, gathering evidence, and applying and sharing our learning, while always working to uphold children’s rights.

Our range of knowledge and expertise means we can provide trusted support on issues as diverse as the people we work with and the varied lives of children and families in Scotland.

Diversity

Children in Scotland values the contribution of all our staff, whatever their background. Our recruitment decisions are based on fair, open processes, with appointment on merit. We welcome applications from everyone.

Further information

For an informal chat about the job, please contact Mark Patterson, Senior Advice and Information Officer by email on mpatterson@childreninscotland.org.uk