Freedom from Torture is the Winner of the Overall Award for Excellence and the top prize for Campaigns and Advocacy at the 2023 Charity Awards.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Scotland-based Legal Advisor to join our Legal Advice and Welfare Service.

Would you like to join our award-winning organisation?

About the role

Legal Advisers at Freedom from Torture deliver expert, detailed, advice to treatment clients and their clinicians on all areas of asylum and immigration law. There is a particular focus on complex, appeals rights exhausted cases where there is a risk of detention, and on supporting clients who are unrepresented. Legal Advisors review evidence produced by clinicians for use in clients’ asylum and immigration cases, ensuring that it complies with the standards required of a professional witness. Legal Advisors are also responsible for delivering internal and external training on a range of legal issues affecting torture survivors within the immigration and asylum system in the UK.

We are seeking to recruit a Legal Advisor for our Glasgow centre, who is a Scottish qualified legal professional with experience of advising on immigration and asylum matters within the Scottish legal system, and who could attend our Glasgow centre at least once every fortnight.

About you

You will be a legal professional qualified to practice in Scotland, with expertise in immigration and asylum law, particularly in relation to the legal protections available to survivors of torture. You will have experience of advising and representing clients in the Tribunals and Courts, including in judicial review claims. You will be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with people who have experienced trauma, and will be able to build professional relationships with a variety of colleagues both internally and externally. You will share our commitment to working with and empowering people who have experienced torture.

In return, we offer a competitive package, with a generous 30-day annual leave entitlement, and 6% employer pension contribution (minimum 1% employee contribution).

Freedom from Torture is committed to showing the salary for all advertised roles and not negotiating salaries for roles, in light of evidence that this contributes to structural inequality.

Our policy is that all appointments will be at the start of the salary range but successful candidates will have the opportunity to move up the scale over time. The progression up the salary range is reviewed on an annual basis and subject to affordability. For this role, the salary range is £47,655 - £55,279 pro rata per annum.

View the Job Description and Person Specification

Please note a CV and a cover letter addressing the job description and person specification of the role are mandatory to be considered for the position.

Freedom from Torture is dedicated to healing and protecting people who have survived torture. We provide therapies to improve physical and mental health, we medically document torture, and we provide legal and welfare help. We expose torture globally, we fight to hold torturing states to account and we campaign for fairer treatment of torture survivors in the UK.

We campaign for national and global change, using evidence from our services and survivor voices to protect and promote survivors' rights and hold torturing states to account. We are proud to play a significant role in the global anti-torture movement. Survivors, active and empowered, are at the centre of all of our work.

Freedom from Torture is committed to its responsibilities under safeguarding, and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is subject to a satisfactory enhanced DBS disclosure, as well as a need for full employment history and up to date employment references.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Partners in Advocacy has established itself as one of Scotland’s leading providers of independent advocacy, delivering exceptional advocacy services since 1998.

We are thrilled to present a wonderful opportunity within our supportive and welcoming Children and Young Persons team. As an independent Advocate you will have the privilege of providing one-on-one independent advocacy to young people in our My Rights My Say Service that supports Children with additional support needs aged 12-15 who want to exercise their own rights within their education. Through this role, you will ensure that young people’s voices and wishes are heard, enabling them to make informed choices, protect their rights and have a meaningful impact on decisions that affect their lives.

We strongly encourage individuals from diverse backgrounds to apply. If you believe your skills, experience, and expertise align with the criteria outlined in the person specification, we would be delighted to hear from you. Please complete the application form, ensuring that you provide examples of how your knowledge and experience fulfil each aspect of the person specification.

Partners in Advocacy takes pride in being a Disability Confident Employer, fully committed to creating an inclusive and accessible work environment.

My Rights My Say can support children Scotland Wide. Please note that this post is Home Based but travel will be required for Face-to-Face visits with Advocacy Partners if requested.

As Project Coordination Assistant you’ll be responsible for administration for a number of fuel poverty related projects that work directly with project delivery partner organisations from within our charity’s membership and the funders of these activities. You will ensure that project reporting is compiled to enable the projects to support low income, vulnerable and fuel poor households in Scotland.

You’ll be curious, driven, impact-focused with attention to detail, passionate about “doing the right thing” and ensuring that Energy Action Scotland continues to be able to delivery it’s key aim of helping vulnerable fuel poor households in Scotland.

Energy Action Scotland secures funds through grants, donations and contracts to help people who are unable to heat and power their homes to a safe standard for their health and wellbeing. Over 1 in 3 households need help, many with underlying health conditions or needs that should mean they are warmer for longer, but this is out of reach for far too many people. Join us and make a difference.

We are looking for a solution-focused Admin & Finance Assistant to join a small, friendly team who believe in the power of volunteering and active citizenship. Based in our main office, this Admin & Finance role is varied and busy. The ideal candidate will be comfortable working with numbers and Excel, and will pick up new systems and processes with ease.

The role

Around half of the role involves administration and office tasks, essential to the smooth running of the organisation. You’ll be assisting with HR administration, managing the facilities, equipment and supplies, and assisting colleagues and volunteers.

Although the other half of the role is finance-based, you don’t necessarily need prior accounting experience. If you find it satisfying to work methodically and with attention to detail, you’ll be perfectly suited to this. You’ll look after our financial records in Xero, a user-friendly, online accounting system.

This role is part-time and we are open to between 21 and 28 hours per week – to be agreed with the successful candidate. The hours may be worked over three, four or five days, Monday to Friday.

About you

As well as being able to manage a busy workload with competing priorities, the ideal candidate will be comfortable learning and working with systems and processes, and adapting them to improve efficiency. You’ll be highly numerate as well as confident and experienced in Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook. While experience of basic financial administration or bookkeeping would be beneficial, you can learn this on the job. Excellent communication skills are essential, as you’ll be working with colleagues and volunteers in a busy office.

Why work for Volunteer Edinburgh

Volunteer Edinburgh is committed to creating a positive, supportive culture where employees and volunteers can thrive. Working for Volunteer Edinburgh will offer you: a generous leave entitlement of 29 days plus eight public holidays, pro rata for part-time employees; support to develop your skills and learning with on-the-job and external training e.g. in charity finance, accounting, or leadership; an established support and supervision framework; access to a cycle to work scheme; an annual chat with a pensions advisor and an employer-supported volunteering policy that provides paid time off to volunteer. Salaries are contractually linked to local government pay, meaning your pay increases in line with the public sector. On top of this we offer a 7% employer pension contribution.

Location

This role is based at our main office. Since we serve the public, all staff take part in supporting our Core Services team. Although we're unable to offer remote or hybrid working, we have a range of practices that support well-being and a good work life balance, recognising that flexibility is important to our employees.

Application notes

You can find more information on the role and person specification in the job description. We’re happy to answer any questions you might have – contact us by emailing finance@volunteeredinburgh.org.uk.