Jobs in West Lothian

About Us

EARS Independent Advocacy Service (SCIO) is recruiting for a Service Manager to lead an experienced team of independent advocates delivering services across the Edinburgh and Lothians area. Reporting to the Board of Trustees, the Service Manager is responsible for service delivery, business and people management and ensuring the organisation remains compliant, effective and impactful.

EARS Independent Advocacy Service is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) which exists to provide free independent advocacy support that enables individuals to engage with and navigate systems and services in ways that ensure their human rights are upheld and that their views, needs and wishes are shared and included in processes and decisions which affect them. Please note that some knowledge or experience of independent advocacy in any context would be beneficial,but is not essential for this role.

About You

You will be a demonstrably effective and compassionate leader and manager with experience of service delivery in care, support or community settings and have an understanding of the third sector landscape. You will have experience of securing funding through successful grant applications or tender bids and of reporting to funders on activity delivered and outcomes and impact achieved. You will be comfortable engaging with a range of stakeholders, skilled in relationship building and positive conflict resolution. You will have experience of effectively setting and managing budgets and operational finances and of producing clear and robust financial reports.

For more information, please find the full Service Manager Job Description and Person Specification below.

Equality and Diversity

EARS Independent Advocacy Service demonstrates its commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion throughout all organisational activity and recruitment, and actively encourages applications from individuals from under-represented and equalities groups and communities.

This is a key role in our Whole Family Support Fund programme. We are recruiting four Senior Family Advisors (Hub Leads) for the following hub areas:

• Glasgow

• Dundee

• West Lothian

• Dumfries and Galloway

You’ll lead the hub in your area, holding a small caseload while co-ordinating day-to-day delivery, line managing a Family Advisor, contributing to monitoring and evaluation, and building the local partnerships that get families the right support at the right time.

You may be a highly experienced practitioner, ready to step into your first management post or already managing and keen to stay close to practice. You will be an excellent communicator, able to build trusting relationships with families and engage effectively with schools, health services and local partners.

This post may occasionally require evening and/or weekend work and will involve frequent travel across your hub area.

Organisation profile

Founded on lived experience, Mindroom champions all forms of neurodiversity and supports all kinds of minds. Our mission is to improve the quality of life for neurodivergent people by removing barriers, increasing opportunities, and shaping a more accessible world.

Passion4Fusion is looking for a compassionate and culturally aware Social Worker to join our team. In this role, you will support Black, Brown, and multi-ethnic parents /carers and families within Scotland’s social care system. You will play a critical role in promoting equitable care and fostering understanding of cultural differences while advocating for systemic change.

This position is ideal for someone committed to social justice, cultural competence, and improving outcomes for ethnically diverse communities.

Key Responsibilities

Family-Centered Support

• Build trusting relationships with parents/carers and families from diverse backgrounds, ensuring their voices are central to decision-making.
• Provide culturally safe parenting support, tailored to a families’ needs; e.g. early intervention to prevent crisis escalation; cultural expectations & children’s rights in Scotland; parenting an adolescent in a new culture; alternatives to physical punishment.
• Collaborate with families to develop care plans that respect and integrate their cultural values and traditions.

Cultural Competence and Advocacy

• Support parents/carers through advocacy in meetings with social care, helping them to articulate their views and challenging bias & discrimination where necessary.
• Identify and address cultural barriers in social care interventions, ensuring all children and families receive equitable treatment.
• Provide insights and advice on cultural best practices to colleagues and other professionals within the care system.

Community Engagement

• Partner with external stakeholders to bridge gaps between communities and the social care system.
• Actively participate in training sessions, workshops, and community programs designed to improve cultural awareness within social work.

Training and Development

• Attend and lead cultural competence training programs to improve understanding of unconscious bias, anti-racism, and systemic inequities.
• Act as a champion for anti-discriminatory practices within your team, organization & across the social care system.

Monitoring and Reporting

• Track and analyse care outcomes to ensure they are equitable and free from bias.
• Provide feedback to management on systemic barriers affecting families from Black, Brown, and ethnically diverse backgrounds, contributing to organizational change initiatives.
• Collect and share data on your project for example case studies and testimonials

Partnerships and Networking

• Collaborate with community leaders, advocacy groups, and other organisations to create holistic support networks for children and families.
• Represent the organization in community forums, fostering relationships to improve trust between communities and social care services.

Essential Qualifications

• A degree in Social Work and registration with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) OR significant experience providing community/parenting/therapeutic support to children & families in a professional context.
• Proven experience working with diverse and multi-ethnic communities.
• Understanding of Scotland’s safeguarding & child protection legislation.
• Strong understanding of cultural competence, anti-racism practices, and systemic inequities in social care.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build trust and understanding with diverse families.

Desirable Skills and Experience

• Experience delivering or participating in training.
• Experience (lived or professional) of Scotland’s care system.
• Multilingual skills are a plus.

What We Offer

• Ongoing professional development, including cultural awareness and anti-racism training.
• Opportunities to work closely with advocacy groups on a regional and national level
• A supportive and inclusive work environment that values diversity and innovation.
• Flexible working arrangements to promote work-life balance.

Street Soccer is a charity using football to create lasting change in the lives of isolated and excluded adults and young people. We run 60 sessions a week of free, inclusive and judgement-free football. These sessions provide person-centred support to players facing a number of challenges including mental health, homelessness, long term unemployment, problem substance use, criminal justice and seeking asylum. Our mission is to create hope and opportunity for all.

We support thousands of players a year on their journey to positive change by providing a safe space, trusting relationships and a sense of belonging. We fight isolation and exclusion by bringing people together, building confidence and creating supportive communities. We support people of all ages and backgrounds through relationship-based support, focusing on trust and personal development, supporting everyone to set and achieve their own goals. Thanks to the support of Street Soccer, 82% of players say that their quality of life has improved.

Lived experience is at the heart of what we do, with over 80% of our staff having lived experience of the challenges our players face.

97% of players think that Street Soccer is a unique organisation. With over 16 years of experience delivering positive change through football, we are now working in more communities than ever, with city hubs in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Aberdeen and South London, as well as a network of sessions across 6 other local authorities.

Leith United is an innovative new partnership of Street Soccer Scotland and YMCA Edinburgh, working together to deliver an impact programme that strengthens community cohesion, promotes inclusive growth, and creates meaningful opportunities for all who call Leith home. At the heart of this initiative is the Leith Community Centre, a vibrant hub for creativity, support, and connection.

Role Purpose

The Street Soccer Women’s programme (previously Street45) provides a safe, supportive space where socially disadvantaged women and girls can be active, connect and build confidence while engaging in football related activity and personal development opportunities.

The Women’s Programme Co-Ordinator will be responsible for developing the Women’s Programme across Scotland in areas including Ayrshire, Glasgow, the Central Belt and Fife . Responsible for sourcing and managing suitable venues for sessions to take place. They will recruit and work with partners to ensure players get the right level of support across a variety of issues. They will grow the number of players attending sessions by promoting these across the community in a variety of ways.

An enthusiastic person, the Women’s Programme Co-Ordinator will be able to build relationships with a series of communities where sessions take place. They will also work with the Fundraising Team to establish local opportunities for sponsorship and other support.

The Women’s Programme Co-Ordinator will also be involved in our Team Scotland Women’s activity including the annual Homeless World Cup Tournament.

We are particularly interested in applications from those with the same lived experience as our players, further information about our Safer Recruitment process can be found within section 8 of our Safeguarding Policy.

Street Soccer value work life balance and are happy to discuss part time hours, job share and flexible working.

About River Kids

River Kids is a West Lothian children’s charity supporting children and families experiencing poverty and disadvantage.

We work closely with schools, health professionals, social work teams, community organisations and local businesses to ensure children have access to essential items, opportunities and support when they need it.

We are a small, hands-on team, and we are looking for an enthusiastic and proactive Events & Communications Officer to help us grow our community presence, strengthen relationships and generate support for our work.

About the role

This is a varied role combining events, communications, community engagement and fundraising.

You will take responsibility for developing and delivering River Kids' programme of fundraising events, including maintaining successful existing events and identifying opportunities to introduce new ones.

You will also manage our day-to-day social media presence. For us, communications are about more than posting content. We want to tell the story of River Kids effectively, demonstrate the difference our work makes and use our platforms to connect with the people, businesses and organisations who can help us achieve more.

A significant part of the role will involve building relationships within the local community. This could mean approaching a business about supporting an appeal, encouraging members of the public to fundraise on our behalf, attending a community information event, promoting an upcoming fundraiser or finding a new opportunity to raise River Kids' profile.

As part of a small charity team, you will also need to be comfortable getting involved in the practical day-to-day work of the organisation when required.

What you'll be doing

• Plan, organise and deliver approximately 3–4 River Kids fundraising events each year, taking responsibility from initial planning through to delivery and evaluation.

• Develop and maintain our successful existing events while identifying opportunities for new fundraising events and activities.

• Manage River Kids' day-to-day social media presence and create engaging, appropriate content across our platforms.

• Use our communications to tell the story of River Kids, demonstrate our impact and connect with relevant supporters and stakeholders.

• Build and maintain relationships with local businesses, community organisations, supporters and other stakeholders.

• Proactively approach businesses to develop donations, sponsorship, fundraising and other forms of support.

• Encourage and support individuals, groups and organisations to fundraise on behalf of River Kids.

• Identify opportunities for community fundraising and engagement and turn promising opportunities into activity.

• Represent River Kids at community events, information days, networking opportunities and other public-facing activities.

• Promote River Kids' campaigns, appeals, events and wider work.

• Maintain relationships with existing supporters and look for opportunities to deepen their involvement with the charity.

• Monitor the performance of events, communications and engagement activity and contribute to relevant KPIs and reporting.

• Work closely with the Charity Manager and Project Lead to ensure communications accurately represent our work, values and impact.

• Support the wider operational work of River Kids when required, recognising that working within a small charity requires flexibility and a hands-on approach.

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About you

We are looking for someone who is proactive, approachable and comfortable building relationships.

You don't need to be an expert in every aspect of events, communications and fundraising. More important to us is someone who can take ownership of their work, communicate confidently and spot opportunities rather than waiting for them to arrive.

You should be:

• A confident communicator who enjoys engaging with different people and organisations.

• Comfortable approaching businesses, community groups and members of the public to ask for support.

• Organised and able to manage events and activities from planning through to completion.

• Able to communicate effectively through social media and adapt content for different audiences.

• Creative and willing to develop new ideas for fundraising and engagement.

• Able to build and maintain positive relationships with supporters and stakeholders.

• Comfortable representing River Kids publicly.

• Able to work independently while contributing to a very small, collaborative team.

• Practical and willing to get involved when needed.

• Able to manage competing priorities and take responsibility for seeing work through.

Experience in events, fundraising, communications, community engagement or the third sector would be valuable. However, we recognise that relevant skills can be developed in different settings and welcome applicants who can demonstrate transferable experience.

What success will look like

The Events & Communications Officer will help River Kids become better connected, better understood and better supported within our community.

Success in the role will include:

• Maintaining and developing River Kids' established fundraising events.

• Successfully delivering approximately 3–4 charity-led events each year.

• Developing new events and fundraising opportunities where appropriate.

• Increasing meaningful engagement with River Kids through social media and community activity.

• Growing the number of individuals, groups and businesses fundraising for or supporting River Kids.

• Developing new relationships with businesses and community partners.

• Maintaining strong relationships with existing supporters.

• Increasing opportunities for River Kids to be represented and recognised within the local community.

• Using communications effectively to demonstrate the need for and impact of River Kids' work.

Working at River Kids

River Kids is a small charity, and that means our roles are varied. While you will have clear responsibility for events and communications, there will be occasions when everyone gets involved in the practical work required to support children and families.

We're looking for someone who will enjoy that environment: someone who can organise an event, speak confidently to a potential supporter, create an engaging social media post and then roll up their sleeves and help the team when things get busy.

If that sounds like you, we'd love to hear from you.

About the Trust and the Centre

Whitburn and District Community Development Trust is a community-led Scottish charity working to improve opportunities, services and community life in Whitburn and the surrounding district.

The Trust operates Whitburn Community Centre and delivers projects including the Community Fridge, Community Support Hub, Community Garden and Brunch Club, alongside wider health, wellbeing and community initiatives. The Centre is used by local residents, community groups, clubs, service providers and private hirers throughout the week.

The opportunity

We are recruiting three dependable and approachable Community Facilities Assistants: two posts of 12 hours per week and one post of 16 hours per week. The team will provide evening and weekend cover, welcome building users, prepare rooms, carry out routine safety checks and make sure the Centre is opened, operated and secured correctly.

This is a hands-on, site-based role. It would suit someone who enjoys helping people, notices practical problems, follows clear procedures and can remain calm and responsible while working independently.

What we offer

Pay of £15.00 per hour.

A regular part-time shift pattern agreed before appointment.

30 days' annual leave including public holidays, calculated pro rata and confirmed in the contract.

Access to the Trust's NEST pension arrangements in accordance with statutory eligibility and opt-in rights.

Induction and role-specific training, including the Centre's opening, closing, safety and emergency procedures.

Important features of the role

Regular evening and weekend work, including shifts ending at 10.00pm.

Periods of lone working, supported by agreed check-in and escalation procedures.

Standing and walking around the building, using stairs and moving tables, chairs and light equipment safely.

Direct contact with a wide range of Centre users, hirers, volunteers and contractors.