The Royal College of General Practitioners is the largest membership organisation solely for GPs in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1952, it has over 55,000 members, including 5000 in Scotland, who are committed to improving patient care, developing their own skills and promoting general practice as a discipline. General practice is the largest branch of the medical profession. It provides some 1 million consultations for patients in the UK every working day and deals with 86% of the health problems experienced by the UK population.

We are currently recruiting a Policy and Public Relations Officer to support our communications, policy and public affairs activity in Scotland, and we are looking for someone who has demonstrable experience in a communications, policy or public affairs role.

You will work closely with the Policy & Public Affairs Manager to ensure that the priorities of RCGP and issues impacting general practice are recognised by policy makers, the press and the public. You will support RCGP work to influencing decision making at the highest level which will have a direct impact on general practice and its patients by drafting RCGP policy consultation responses, representing RCGP policy at high-level external stakeholder meetings and providing comprehensive briefings to our GP representatives ahead of these meetings.

You will also help to deliver our internal and external communications across Scotland, ensuring that our key messages reach the intended audiences to maximise impact. This will require you to develop and maintain links with media contacts across Scotland, draft key internal communications to our members and produce proactive and reactive media statements. You will take a lead role in maintaining our social media presence.

Our small, friendly team plays a key role in supporting general practice in Scotland. You’ll be helping communicate to stakeholders the views of the RCGP, and to do that effectively, knowledge and experience of the health agenda, patient issues and political context of Scotland would be highly advantageous.

You’ll have degree level education or have requisite experience, be an excellent team player and be able to work across a varied organisation and take a corporate viewpoint.

The successful candidate will share our corporate values. In return, the College offers excellent terms and conditions and great working environment. This role will be hybrid with two days a week in our office in Edinburgh city centre. We offer flexible working hours Monday to Friday.

Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP) is seeking to appoint an experienced Policy and Public Affairs Officer who is educated to degree level, ideally with a relevant postgraduate qualification, with a keen interest in reducing harms from alcohol.

The Role

The Policy and Public Affairs Officer will help guide SHAAP advocacy activities through identifying and analysing relevant policy, providing advice and developing evidence-based positions, carrying out research, monitoring media and policy activity, dealing with the media, responding to consultations, organising events and providing administrative support.

SHAAP is a partnership of the Medical Royal Colleges and the Faculty of Public Health in Scotland and is based at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

Using the best available evidence, SHAAP provides the authoritative clinical voice on how policy makers and clinicians can reduce alcohol-related harms in Scotland. We work in close collaboration with key organisations in the alcohol field in Scotland, the rest of the UK and worldwide.

The Person

The Policy and Public Affairs Officer will be an excellent communicator with internal and external stakeholders at all levels of seniority, with the ability to self-manage and prioritise in a dynamic context and within a small team. They must have the ability to advise on and communicate SHAAP policy positions, with experience of researching and drafting briefings, and/or policy papers and/or consultation responses. They must also be able to represent SHAAP at internal and external meetings, seminars and conferences.

Please refer to the Job Description for the role and person full details.

Remuneration Package

The salary for this role will be £34,711 per annum plus benefits. Additional benefits include:

• Pension: with employer contributions of 9%.
• Holidays: 23 days annual leave (with incremental increase over five years to 28 days) and 11 days public holiday/College close downs.
• Life assurance scheme.
• Long-term income protection scheme for those unable to work due to illness.
• Cycle to Work scheme.
• Discounted rates for use of the venue for personal events.

*Based at the College in Queen Street, Edinburgh, with flexibility for a form of hybrid working to be agreed.

The Office of Lorna Slater MSP (based in The Scottish Parliament) is looking for a caseworker who is organised, patient, sensitive, and has a natural interest in helping people.

MSPs are employers in their own right. Under their employment, you will become part of a team supporting them in carrying out their duties. You'll work in a dynamic and fast paced environment to provide an outstanding service for constituents.

Responsibilities

• Complete oversight of casework management

• Supporting with keeping casework up to date and responding to public enquiries.

• Keeping cases up to date by tracking, logging and recognising when to escalate issues within team.

• Meeting constituents on a wide range of issues, including those of a sensitive nature and escalating accordingly.

• Advocating on constituent’s behalf with relevant bodies to resolve matters.

• Producing reports and monitoring media trends on my behalf.

• Conducting basic research and surveys.

• Investigating patterns of enquiries and producing reports.

• Monitoring local and regional media and generating media coverage.

• Briefing me and drafting responses.

• Reviewing constituent records and documentation in line with casework GDPR requirements.

• Ensuring casework filing systems, both electronic and manual, are kept up-to-date in line with GDPR requirements.

About You

• Have excellent organisational skills while being flexible in prioritising workloads during busy times.

• Have excellent communications skills, with accurate attention to detail and the ability to work effectively with colleagues.

• Be patient and sensitive while remaining objective and open minded.

• Be comfortable being in a front facing role explaining regulations such as GDPR to the general public.

• Be acutely aware of the responsibility of representing those unable to do so themselves in certain situations.

• Have a natural interest in helping people with a curiosity to probe for further information where required.

For any questions about the role please contact: Kayleigh.O'Neill@Parliament.scot

Working for a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP)

Mark Ruskell MSP is looking for a Casework Coordinator to join his team based in Mid Scotland and Fife.

MSPs are employers in their own right. Under their employment, you will become part of a team supporting them in carrying out their duties. You'll work in a dynamic and fast paced environment to provide an outstanding service for constituents.

Responsibilities

• Supporting with keeping casework up to date and responding to public enquiries.
  • Keeping cases up to date by tracking, logging, and recognising when to escalate issues within team.
  • Meeting constituents on a wide range of issues, including those of a sensitive nature and escalating accordingly.
  • Supporting the Head of Office to investigate patterns of enquiries and produce casework reports.

• Assisting the broader regional team by attending visits, monitoring local issues and media coverage on my behalf.
  • Corresponding with constituents and local campaign groups.
  • Preparing and delivering regular briefings and updates on regional issues to Mark and the broader team.
  • Supporting Mark on visits across the Mid Scotland & Fife Region.
  • Monitoring local and regional media trends.

• Supporting with general regional office administration and acting as front of office for enquiries.
  • Responding to all regional correspondence while professionally managing each enquiry within agreed timescale
  • Building and maintaining relationships with regional organisations, stakeholders, and groups as required.
  • Drafting written correspondence such as letters, requests for information and parliamentary questions and motions.

• Reviewing constituent records and documentation in line with casework GDPR requirements.
  • Ensuring casework filing systems, both electronic and manual, are kept up-to-date in line with GDPR requirements.
  • Ensuring broader administrative and secretarial support is provided.

About You

Requirements

• Have experience of providing professional advice and/or advocacy support in a work or voluntary setting.
• Have the ability to foster good working relationships with a wider variety of stakeholders.
• Be a proactive problem solver with the motivation and resilience to adapt and deal with challenges and find solutions.
• Have excellent written, verbal and IT skills with accurate attention to detail.
• Have a flexible and adaptable approach, being able to use good judgement and work on own initiative.
• Be well organised with the ability to prioritise competing workloads.
• Be patient and sensitive while remaining objective and open minded.
• Be comfortable being in a front facing role explaining regulations such as GDPR to the general public.
• Be acutely aware of the responsibility of representing those unable to do so themselves in certain situations.
• Have a natural interest in helping people with a curiosity to probe for further information where required.
• Have an interest in politics and the Mid Scotland and Fife region.