Jobs in West Lothian

Mental Health Advocacy Project (West Lothian) SCIO

The Mental Health Advocacy Project (MHAP) has been in existence since the late 1980’s when care in the community began to develop. Initially, the Project was set up as a befriending service but developed into an independent advocacy service in the mid 1990’s. MHAP became a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation in May 2015.

We offer professional individual advocacy and collective advocacy services for people who experience mental health problems and/or substance use issues. We are committed to helping our service users to have their views and opinions heard.

We provide advocacy services to approximately 500 people annually who experience mental health, drug and alcohol problems. We have a current staff team of 7 people and are governed by a management committee with the majority being mental health service users. Our project is independent which means we work with people in a way that is free from conflict of interest.

We are looking to recruit an Advocacy Worker for a full time (36 hours) post to provide independent advocacy for people who have or have had mental health issues and/or substance use problems.

Advocacy plays an important role in the process of supporting and enabling people to express their views and concerns, access information and services, defending and promoting rights and exploring choices and options, both individually and collectively.

Main Responsibilities

The post holder will work with people on a one-to-one basis to provide advocacy support on a specific issue. Main responsibilities include:

• To work as part of a team responding to requests for independent advocacy.

• Provide advocacy in a range of settings, for example hospital, office, community and HMP Addiewell and any other relevant environment.

• Manage a caseload in conjunction with our priority groups e.g. Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 and Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000.

• To provide non- instructed advocacy for individuals falling under the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000, in line with the SIAA Non-Instructed Advocacy Guidelines.

Additional Information

• Safeguarding and protecting vulnerable adults is of utmost importance in our work therefore the successful applicant will be given training and regular supervision and will be required to submit to an Enhanced PVG Scheme Disclosure.

• The post will be based in our office in Broxburn however candidate would be expected to travel throughout West Lothian.

• IT equipment will be supplied to allow homeworking when suitable.

• Office hours are Monday to Thursday between 9am and 5pm and Friday between 9am and 3pm.

• Probationary period: 4 months.

• Employees will be auto enrolled into a Group Personal Pension in line with current legislation – 6% contribution by employer and 3% contribution by employee.

• Employees have access to Employee Assistance Programme.

• Death in Service scheme.

• Holidays: 30 days per year + 7 public holidays.

• Post funded until Mar 26.

Kidzeco is a successful and well-established social enterprise in West Lothian providing effective support to families with children 5 and under, in their community, when they need us most.

We are looking for an Early Years Officer to join our team to support the development and facilitation of our programme of activities in line with our health improvement work.

Purpose of the Job

To work as part of our expanding team to plan, design and deliver support sessions for new and expectant parents in line with our health improvement initiatives. These include (but are not limited to) breastfeeding support, baby massage, baby wearing, baby sensory, bookbugs and weaning.

As the role will involve liaising with partners, referral organisations and families it is essential that the successful candidate can communicate at all levels and has a working knowledge of West Lothian.

The position will be split between Kidz n Kin Community Space at The Centre, Livingston and Kidz-eco Bathgate; therefore it is preferential that the post holder has their own transport. The appointed applicant will also be required to become a member of the PVG scheme.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a motivated and ambitious organisation so if you have the sunshine personality, relevant skills and are willing to learn then please apply.

Organisational and Programme overview:

Linlithgow Community Development Trust is a community organisation who aim to make Linlithgow a better place to live and work. They instil passion by working with local people and in partnership with local groups to drive ideas and enthusiasm and have recently opened the West Lothian Cycle Circuit. This has led to us starting a Linlithgow Active Travel programme to encourage more people to cycle, walk and wheel for the benefit of their health and for the benefit of the environment.

The West Lothian Cycle circuit has been designed for easy access with inclusion a key driver in the development of the scheme. Whether it’s used by children learning to ride a bike, people of all ages cycling for fun, women, people with disabilities mastering the joy of riding an adaptive bike or handcycle or cyclists with their sights on sporting success, the West Lothian Cycle Circuit will champion a culture of cycling for generations to come.

Job Purpose:

This role will act as the project lead, to encourage local involvement and behaviour change around sustainable active travel. You will be responsible for staff and volunteer management, stakeholder management, budgets and monitoring and evaluation.

Embedded within Linlithgow Community Development Trust (LCDT), you will be part of the development and delivery of events to promote the exciting new West Lothian Cycle Circuit. You will work with partners and staff to lead on all aspects of the active travel programme, coordinating and supporting a facility programme that compliments and adds value to other cycling, walking and wheeling related activities within West Lothian. These will specifically include West Lothian Cycle Circuit partners such as West Lothian Leisure, Active Schools, West Lothian Clarion Cycle Club, Scottish Cycling and First Step Development as well as disability focused organisations. You will ensure a programme of activities delivered in the heart of the communities and at the West Lothian Cycle Circuit. This programme’s outcomes are that more people will gain confidence to cycle, walk and wheel more for everyday journeys.

Organisational Overview:

Linlithgow Community Development Trust is a community organisation who aim to make Linlithgow a better place to live and work. We instil passion by working with local people and in partnership with local groups to drive ideas and enthusiasm and have recently opened the West Lothian Cycle Circuit. This has led to us starting a Linlithgow Active Travel Project to encourage more people to cycle, walk and wheel for the benefit of their health and for the benefit of the environment.

The West Lothian Cycle circuit has been designed for easy access with inclusion a key driver in the development of the scheme. Whether it’s used by children learning to ride a bike, people of all ages cycling for fun, women, people with disabilities mastering the joy of riding an adaptive bike or handcycle or cyclists with their sights on sporting success, the West Lothian Cycle Circuit will champion a culture of cycling for generations to come.

Job Purpose:

Embedded within Linlithgow Community Development Trust (LCDT), you will support an annual plan and directly deliver events to promote local involvement and behaviour change around sustainable active travel.

You will work with the Project Manager to deliver and support a facility programme that compliments and adds value to cycling, walking and wheeling related activities across West Lothian. This will include direct delivery of a wide range of activities both in the heart of the communities and at the cycle circuit that will support people to gain confidence to cycle, walk and wheel more for everyday journeys. There will be some evening and weekend work.

Organisational Overview:

Linlithgow Community Development Trust is a community organisation who aim to make Linlithgow a better place to live and work. We instil passion by working with local people and in partnership with local groups to drive ideas and enthusiasm and have recently opened the West Lothian Cycle Circuit. This has led to us starting a Linlithgow Active Travel project to encourage more people to cycle, walk and wheel for the benefit of their health and for the benefit of the environment.

The West Lothian Cycle Circuit has been designed for easy access with inclusion a key driver in the development of the scheme. Whether it’s used by children learning to ride a bike, people of all ages cycling for fun, women, people with disabilities mastering the joy of riding an adaptive bike or handcycle or cyclists with their sights on sporting success, the West Lothian Cycle Circuit will champion a culture of cycling for generations to come.

Job Purpose:

Based at the EH49 Hub in Linlithgow, working mainly with the Active Travel Project Manager to offer support for a project that delivers cycling, walking and wheeling related activities within West Lothian.

Your role will be to provide operational and administrative support to ensure successful delivery of the year long project. You will thrive on being organised and have a high level of attention to detail. You will manage bookings, liaise with partners, staff, volunteers and customers and support the day- to-day operational needs of the West Lothian Cycle Circuit, our e-bikes and e-van and the Active Travel Programme of events. You will be the first point of contact for any external enquiries and ensure actions are taken to respond in a timely and professional manner. Administration support for other LCDT projects and events will be required on occasion.

JMT Care Services is an independent fostering agency that provides high quality fostering and continuing care placements for children and young people through the JMT Fostering and JMT Young Adult Placement services. We are looking for an experienced Social Worker to join our small team. You will be based in our Livingston office, with the option of a workspace in Dundee, covering Fife and the East of Scotland.

You will be involved in the recruitment, assessment, training and supervision of foster carers in Scotland. As a qualified Social Worker registered with the appropriate body, you will have recent experience of fostering or child care practice, including the recruitment and assessment of potential foster carers. A good knowledge of fostering regulations, child care law and safeguarding issues is essential. You must have excellent communication skills and a commitment to high quality practice. You will be joining a well-established and experienced team that has high expectations for their level of practice. You will be a good communicator and a skilled and self-motivated professional, with the ability to work flexibly, including travel across the country. As well as managing your caseload and supporting colleagues, you will be part of a duty rota to support the running of the service, both within and outside of normal office hours dealing with crisis and challenges. You will be involved in delivering bespoke training to prospective and existing foster carers. You will have a strong commitment to promoting and safeguarding the wellbeing of children, along with an appreciation of the demands that come with working for a high quality fostering service in an increasingly competitive environment.

Small for All is looking for a highly motivated individual to work alongside our Charity Founder to ensure the smooth running of the charity, in particular the warehouse.

The post holder will provide operational support in the warehouse, including key holding responsibilities, room set-up, cleaning and other tasks to ensure the warehouse runs smoothly. They will also have responsibility for managing our volunteers on a day-to-day basis and dealing with Royal Mail as well as other administration responsibilities.

The position requires a high level of organisational skill, competence in a range of information technology applications such as email and Microsoft Teams and the ability to work well with others.

A full Job Description and Person Specification is available to download below.

EARS is an independent advocacy provider – our role is to make sure people’s voices are heard when there are issues in their lives.

Work undertaken for this post will be in the Edinburgh and East Lothian community, with the office based in Livingston, West Lothian.

Applications

We especially welcome applications from people with any of the following:

- some experience of providing advocacy

- working with people with a disability

- experience of the Health and Social Care Sector

- experience of the third sector

West Lothian Drug and Alcohol Service is a well-established 3rd sector organisation with a history and reputation for delivering a wide range of effective early interventions and psychological therapies around alcohol and drugs throughout West Lothian as well as providing Young Peoples Services and a Family Support Service.

As part of our Psychological Therapies service we are looking to recruit a dynamic and flexible Art Therapist to provide Art Therapy to young people and adults who are experiencing substance misuse issues or who are affected by the substance misuse of a family member, friend or someone who has been a significant person in their lives and to young people who have experienced the sudden death of a family member, friend or significant other

This is a fixed term post until 31 March 2026, funded through the West Lothian Whole Family Approach Public Social Partnership and The Robertson Trust. The role will mainly involve face to face 1 to 1 working, with some group work interventions across West Lothian in a range of settings. Some evening work and weekend work may be required from time to time.

This post is delivered in person and is not suitable for hybrid or home working. The Service operates from premises at The Almondbank Centre in Craigshill, Livingston.

For further information about the post contact: Fiona Brown, Psychological Services Manager on 07795200260 or fiona.brown@wldas.org