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 position. This means we listen to what young people say and support them to ensure their voices are truly heard regarding the decisions which are being made about their lives. This role will see the postholder take responsibility for providing this service to children and young people across all Spark of Genius locations, covering a vast geographical area. The varied locations of Spark of Genius services means that significant travel is required in this role.

The post-holder will also be a key member of the West Central Advocacy and Participation team, with 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. The role will see you actively participating in child’s plan meetings, children’s hearings, and other formal processes, as well as assisting children and young people to prepare for them. In partnership with 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, your role will include facilitating group opportunities for and with children and young people across Spark of Genius services. 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 care corporate parents.

The right candidate for this post will be able to form positive relationships with children and young people and have good interpersonal skills. You will feel confident communicating with individuals and groups, both in writing and verbally, and be able to adapt to a wide range of contexts. Secure in making effective plans, as well as evidencing your work, you can prioritise and meet deadlines. You take enjoyment from working collaboratively with partners, believing in equal opportunities and inclusive working. Committed to children’s rights, you are someone who knows that all young people can make transformative change happen in their lives if given the opportunity. You can demonstrate knowledge of the current structure, developments, policy, and practice in relation to children and young people experiencing care in Scotland. You are also flexible, given the remit of the role, as some evening and weekend work will be necessary, 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 candidate will be joining Who Cares? Scotland and working within the West Central 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.

Do you have relevant experience of working with children and young people with a disability/and or autism or relevant experience in a similar sector or work environment?

About Options Ayrshire

Our Service is a busy respite care unit for children and young people with additional support needs, including complex learning and physical disabilities. As well as providing short residential breaks the service offers outreach to families and is also involved in the managing and running of an after school club as well as a busy Easter and Summer play scheme.

Our after school club is based outside of Ayr within a building at Mosshill Industrial Estate. Our disability support service offers a safe, nurturing environment for a child to come and play for a short break that gives their families a rest from their caring role. During that break, children enjoy a range of fun activities and experiences with our staff who specialise in taking care of children with disabilities.

What we are looking for...

Working as part of the staff team you will ensure that the highest level of physical and emotional care is provided to the children and young people using the Out of School Club. Ideally, you will have experience of working with this group of young people.

This post is for 15 hours per week, term time only (38 weeks over a full year). This post attracts a 5% unsocial hours allowance. You will be required to be on the SSSC Day Care of Children register and meet, or be prepared to gain, the qualifications requirements for this category which is at SCQF level 6 (for example, SVQ Level 3 or HNC).

At Aberlour we want to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential. If you share the same vision, we want you to join our team. Aberlour’s values are critical and drive everything we do. We will be looking for someone who can demonstrate how Aberlour’s values of Respect, Innovation, Integrity and Challenge will be visible in their practice.

What we offer...

You will receive a planned and supported induction consisting of a varied training programme, including Child Protection. You will be working alongside a highly motivated and skilled team. Find out more about our Employee Benefits and our commitment to Equality and Diversity on our website.

Aberlour is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all our service users and uses a thorough and rigorous recruitment and selection process including PVG Scheme checks to ensure this commitment is not compromised.

If you have any queries please e-mail: jobs@aberlour.org.uk

Do you have relevant experience of working with children and young people with a disability/and or autism or relevant experience in a similar sector or work environment?

About Options Ayrshire

Our Service is a busy respite care unit for children and young people with additional support needs, including complex learning and physical disabilities. As well as providing short residential breaks the service offers outreach to families and is also involved in the managing and running of an after school club as well as a busy Easter and Summer play scheme.

Our after school club is based outside of Ayr within a building at Mosshill Industrial Estate. Our disability support service offers a safe, nurturing environment for a child to come and play for a short break that gives their families a rest from their caring role. During that break, children enjoy a range of fun activities and experiences with our staff who specialise in taking care of children with disabilities.

What we are looking for...

Working as part of the staff team you will ensure that the highest level of physical and emotional care is provided to the children and young people using the Out of School Club. Ideally, you will have experience of working with this group of young people.

This post is for 20 hours per week, term time only (38 weeks over a full year), and attracts a 5% unsocial hours allowance. This vacancy is linked to maternity leave cover and is expected to run from May 2023 until May 2024. You will be required to be on the SSSC Day Care of Children register and meet, or be prepared to gain, the qualifications requirements for this category which is at SCQF level 6 (for example, SVQ Level 3 or HNC).

At Aberlour we want to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential. If you share the same vision, we want you to join our team. Aberlour’s values are critical and drive everything we do. We will be looking for someone who can demonstrate how Aberlour’s values of Respect, Innovation, Integrity and Challenge will be visible in their practice.

What we offer...

You will receive a planned and supported induction consisting of a varied training programme, including Child Protection. You will be working alongside a highly motivated and skilled team. Find out more about our Employee Benefits and our commitment to Equality and Diversity on our website.

Aberlour is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all our service users and uses a thorough and rigorous recruitment and selection process including PVG Scheme checks to ensure this commitment is not compromised.

If you have any queries please e-mail: jobs@aberlour.org.uk

About Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC)

Aberlour Child Care Trust is leading a Partnership of Highland Council, Barnardos Highland Services and Right There to provide practical support care and integration to Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC).

The location for this role is 5 Huntly Place, Inverness, IV3 8HA.

This is a new partnership which focuses on three areas – feeling safe and settling in, support and integration, throughcare aftercare with the aim of improving the lives of children by using a rights-based trauma informed approach.

The service will work in partnership to ensure that the young people have access to education and learning opportunities.

What we are looking for....

We are looking for a Relief Project Worker to provide ad hoc cover when staff are on holiday or are off sick. Relief workers are a vital part of our team, helping to ensure that full cover is available throughout the year and ensuring that our Project Workers get the essential breaks they need. Work is offered on a casual basis: Relief workers are not obliged to accept shifts offered and Aberlour is not obliged to offer shifts. In return for taking on this essential role, you will work alongside a dedicated, supportive staff team and be offered valuable training and development opportunities.

You will support the Project Worker in planning support and integrating Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking children into the community. You will engage with the young people helping them to find their way around the community. You will have problem solving abilities to enable them to participate fully in having their needs met and participate in opportunities to develop. You will support the young people to travel independently around the local area and learn to use public transport. You will also support them to pursue their hobbies and interests linking in with community groups and access community facilities. As English will often not be their first language you will work with them to identify their communication needs, adapting your communication style accordingly. You will also liaise with local agencies, developing collaborative professional working relationships working together for the benefit of the children. You will also attend a range of group meetings to discuss the progress of the children and young people.

You must be comfortable working in a culture based on respect, integrity, innovation and the ability to challenge – both yourself and other people. We support our staff to be as effective as they can be through dedicated training and supervision. In return our staff act as exceptional role models supporting the children and young people, as well as sharing knowledge and learning with colleagues.

Ideally, you will have a relevant professional qualification at SCQF level 7 or above, or be willing to work towards this.

At Aberlour we want to make sure every child and young person has the love, support and opportunity they need to reach their potential. If you share the same vision, we want you to join our team. Aberlour’s values are critical and drive everything we do. We will be looking for someone who can demonstrate how Aberlour’s values of Respect, Innovation, Integrity and Challenge will be visible in their practice. You must be comfortable working in an environment where Aberlour’s values are lived in practice.

For an informal discussion about the post we would encourage you to phone

Rhonda Wilson, Head of Admissions and Programmes on 07715 238337.

What we offer...

As well as a supportive team and excellent training opportunities, we want all our employees to feel valued and rewarded for the vital work they do. When you work with us, we'll recognise your efforts with generous annual leave, an excellent employer pension scheme and a range of deals and discounts across various retailers.