Why apply for this role?

Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS) is undergoing an exciting period of reform designed to make a step change in improving outcomes for children.

We have a fantastic opportunity for a Participation Advisor to join our team and use their passion and innovation to involve children and young people to improve CHS’s functions and uphold children’s rights.

Building on the work that has already been done, you will support an ambitious programme of participatory work involving children and people with experience of the hearing system to drive forward improvements in practices and standards.

Your role

You will lead focused, creative and structured engagement work with groups of children and young people, including our Experts by Experience group. You will create the space, audiences and opportunities to ensure the voice of children and young people with lived experience of the hearing system are elevated and influence decision making within CHS and across the Children’s Hearings System.

You will provide support to our Experts by Experience group to enable them to develop their own skills and confidence when they participate with CHS.

Critical to this role will be your ability to build connections with key partners to share learning, improve practice and bring about lasting change. You will help build a strong brand and identity to this work.

About you

You must have experience of working with children and young people to bring about lasting change. You will have a good working knowledge of the Children’s Hearings System, the legislative landscape, children’s rights, and the issues that face children and young people in the hearing system.

You will be supported to further develop your knowledge of the Children’s Hearings System and be given exposure to national forums and development opportunities that will build on your existing knowledge.

You will work closely with CHS colleagues, children and young people and partner organisations to encourage and use feedback to help bring about lasting change.

You will have knowledge of confidentiality and trauma informed practice, and how to effectively engage and encourage young people with lived experience of the hearing system. Above all you must be committed to children’s rights and have experience of being involved in programmes of work that have resulted in impactful improvements.

For information on how to apply, please see bottom of the advert.

Life at CHS

At Children’s Hearings Scotland, our highly trained Panel Members make decisions for Scotland’s unique Children’s Hearings System that upholds and promotes the rights of infants, children and young people. Our 2,500 volunteer Panel Members take part in children’s hearings in their local areas, making decisions with and for infants, children and young people. Our organisation also supports a network of Area Support Teams throughout Scotland who support Panel Members in their local communities.

As an organisation that works within the Children’s Hearings System, we are passionate about making a positive contribution to improving outcomes for Scotland’s infants, children and young people.

You can read more about our core values on our website as well as view an introductory video to our organisation. We also offer a generous benefits package from hybrid working to flexi hours and a fantastic pension scheme – check out our full benefits summary.

Diversity and Inclusion

CHS is an equal opportunities employer. We encourage diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We actively encourage applicants from all protected characteristics and are committed to providing any reasonable adjustments required during the application and assessment process, and upon joining us.

Hybrid working and working pattern

This is hybrid role and you are expected to travel in line with business needs, including meeting young people at a location that works for them. This will involve being 'on-site' an average of two days per week. You are also expected to travel on occasion to the CHS Head Office at Thistle House, Haymarket, Edinburgh. This involves attending directorate meetings throughout the year and any other additional organisational activities of which you will be given reasonable notice.

The standard working week is Monday to Friday but this role will require a level of evening and weekend work in line with business needs.

Every day people with chest, heart and stroke conditions are leaving hospital scared and alone. You can be part of our mission to make sure that there is no life half lived in Scotland.

By joining Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland (CHSS) as a Governance Officer you can be the difference between people just surviving and really living.

You will be part of Scotland’s leading health charity providing support to people with chest, heart and stroke conditions and Long Covid to live life to the full again. Our Community Healthcare Support Service provides access to a range of supported self management and community recovery services to support people across Scotland to manage their health as well as possible and adjust to life after a diagnosis of a chest or heart condition or after a stroke.

The Governance Officer will provide support to the Chief Executive, Company Secretary and Senior Executive Assistant in Governance matters relating to the Board of Trustees. The role will ensure that CHSS has the structures, processes and procedures in place to ensure good governance and compliance with statutory Board obligations.

CHSS employees enjoy a variety of organisational benefits including: Company pension scheme, generous holiday allowance, company sick pay, employee welfare support and life assurance.

CHSS also supports flexible recruitment through Working Families and we are “Happy to Talk Flexible Working”.

In line with our commitment to safeguarding, this role is subject to a Basic Disclosure check. CHSS is committed to equality of opportunity and to providing a service which is free from unfair and unlawful discrimination. We therefore aim to ensure that no applicant, volunteer or member of staff is unfairly treated on the grounds of offending background.

If you are looking for a rewarding career and to work within an epic team that will help you grow and thrive, then you have come to the right place. Working within our Self-Harm Network Scotland service you can start your day knowing what you do really does make a difference!

Penumbra has been delivering the Self-Harm Network Scotland service since 2021 and through our work to date we have identified the need for a more tailored and bespoke response to self-harm for different communities and contexts across Scotland. As a Practice Development Officer, you will play a lead role in sharing the learning from our experience and practice to date through engagement and co-production with organisations and individuals in key communities across Scotland.

In this varied role you will develop and maintain links and relationships with a variety of organisations and services, such as education establishments, NHS services, statutory services and third sector services such as homelessness services, foodbanks, community hubs, LGBTQ+ services, carers services, bereavement support and other mental health support services. You will work collaboratively with a range of stakeholders to develop and deliver community-led capacity building activities and resources designed to increase access to support for people who self-harm, as well as the organisations and individuals who support them. This will include (but is not limited to) delivering self-harm awareness training, chairing focus groups, sharing service information, knowledge and resources, attending community events, delivering parent/carer group sessions and creating engaging resources.

You will provide and role model a compassionate response to self-harm, enabling communities to reduce the risk to people who self-harm and to respond effectively to distress in a community setting.

As a mental health charity, we really value the wellbeing of our staff. That’s why we want you to know that you’ll be joining a friendly team who will give you a supportive environment to help you thrive in your role, including all the training you need to feel confident and equipped.

We can offer you a tonne of employee benefits, and we can promise you’ll be inspired by some pretty amazing humans every single day. We will support you on your own career path; developing new skills, accessing formal and informal learning experiences and providing opportunities to put your continual progress into practice.

For more information, including full job description and application/interview guidance, please download our recruitment pack.

We cannot consider CV’s – all applications should go through the application process on our website. Only applications completed through our website will be considered. If you are unable to complete an online application, please contact us at recruitment@penumbra.org.uk and we can arrange for a paper copy to be sent out to you.

Please note that unfortunately we cannot offer visa sponsorship. We can only accept applications from applicants who currently have the legal right to work in the UK, or applicants who have already have an application in progress to obtain the legal right to work in the UK.

We are on an exciting journey. We have positioned ourselves as the leading HIV charity in Scotland and our aim is to effectively influence the policy and service landscape to ensure that Scotland reaches zero HIV transmission by 2030. We are achieving this through raising awareness of HIV and undertaking projects to meet different workforces and communities education needs.

HIV Informed is a national education resource for Scotland’s health and social care workforce, launched by Waverley Care in December 2025.

It is a free online learning hub designed to:

• Challenge outdated knowledge and misconceptions about HIV

• Provide accurate, up-to-date information on HIV today

• Reduce stigma and discrimination

• Support professionals to deliver inclusive, respectful, stigma‑free care

The learning hub includes structured learning modules, knowledge quizzes to support learning and reflection, engaging videos and lived experience content and downloadable learning resources for use in practice and training.

HIV Informed was developed by Waverley Care in partnership with NHS Scotland and people living with HIV and is funded by the Scottish Government.

This post will work to actively promote and embed HIV Informed within health and social care settings across Scotland. The role will achieve this through delivering short awareness sessions and developing existing resources for frontline staff.

This role would collaborate with health and social care management teams and learning and development teams to support the implementation of HIV informed in workforce development plans. Furthermore, the postholder will attend national conferences, network meetings and stakeholder events.

About You

We welcome applications from people with lived experience of HIV, as well as those with professional experience in health, social care, or community engagement. We are looking for someone with:

• A demonstrable interest in, and passion for, improving the lives of people affected by blood-borne viruses (BBVs), in particular people disproportionately affected by HIV

• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to develop positive relationships with a range of stakeholders

• Experience in project management and leading in an area of work

• Experience in delivering training, stakeholder relationship development, and engagement

• Experience of working in health and social care learning and development settings

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills appropriate for a wide range of audiences

• Be a strong team player, able to use your initiative and reflect on your practice

• Interested in development opportunities and further training

Why Join Us?

This is a unique opportunity to be part of a progressive organisation at a pivotal moment in Scotland’s public health journey. You’ll have the chance to influence real change, working alongside passionate colleagues committed to making a lasting impact on people’s lives.

We offer a supportive working environment with hybrid working options, professional development opportunities and a generous annual leave entitlement.