The successful post-holder will be expected to operate in line with our values which are:

Justice, Equity, Trust, Collaboration and Compassion.

Overview

OPFS was founded in 1940 and since then we have been at the forefront of shaping policy and services in Scotland, that support single parents and their children. Today, there are over 144,000 single parent families in Scotland, 25% of all families. We involve parents, champion their voices and keep their needs at the heart of everything we do.

We want a society in which single parent families are treated equally and fairly. To help achieve this we provide a range of single parent tailored services. We do this through our advice channels, self-help pages on our website and our local community-based services. To create lasting change we involve single parents, experts by experience, to influence policies which challenge discrimination and judgmental attitudes, which will reduce child poverty and make services more accessible to all families.

The Policy and Influencing Lead will play a key role in supporting OPFS to achieve its mission – to amplify the voices of single parent families in their unique role as sole carers and providers and together challenge judgemental attitudes, poverty and inequality to achieve change.

You will have a central role leading OPFS policy and influencing work, including:

• Leading on government and parliamentary focused engagement work – and to support single parent led and developed campaigns.
• Developing strong policy recommendations co-produced with single parents across the range of issues affecting single parent families.
• Utilising existing research of relevance to single parent families to support OPFS’s external messaging and forward planning.
• Developing impactful policy influencing strategies to improve the lives of single parents, by influencing the Scottish and UK Governments as well as local authorities and the general public to achieve change.
• Working collaboratively with OPFS Comms team and colleagues and stakeholders to disseminate OPFS policy and research activities.

All roles at OPFS contribute to our mission of working with and for single parent families, providing support that enables them to achieve their potential and helping to create lasting solutions to poverty and barriers facing single parents and their children. Our core values of Justice, Equity, Trust, Collaboration and Compassion are at the heart of everything we do and underpin all aspects of our work.

Equal opportunities and family friendly employment

• OPFS aims to be an equal opportunity and family friendly employer and flexible working requests will be considered. OPFS has Investors In People status and Living Wage accreditation.