National Care Service in Edinburgh

Do you want an exciting chance to join our small team in the National Care Service (NCS) Programme focusing on the planning and implementation of reform that enables better care for people using and delivering social care services? This post will offer you the opportunity to work across the two teams leading the support and development of the NCS Advisory Board and its support structures. You will work closely with the Advisory Board Chair, Board members, COSLA and SG policy colleagues. The role includes all secretariat duties and the development and oversight of materials to ensure that the Board has credible information to inform its advice. You will be supported to collaborate effectively with colleagues in carrying out this work. You will also be given the opportunity to work closely with senior colleagues to develop our approach to integrated health and social care, particularly in relation to the voice of clinical leadership and other professionals involved in the delivery of community health and social care services. Further, you will play a leading role on the development of statutory guidance for lived experience representatives on Integration Joint Boards (IJBs). You will also contribute to delivery of other projects involved in improving participation in social care decisions, including the introduction of regulations to extend voting rights on local IJBs and preparing for the Minister's evidence to Parliament.

Responsibilities

• The key responsibilities for this post will be shared with a Policy Adviser currently in the team.
• Oversight and arrangement of all logistics for NCS Advisory Board meetings. This includes securing venues, diary management, financial management of Board members' expenses and remuneration, organising resources to support board activities and ensuring accessibility requirements are met.
• Act as a Single Point of Contact for Board members.
• Build and maintain positive relationships and collaborate with Board members and stakeholders on a regular basis, providing direct support where possible, and liaising with colleagues to secure additional support as required.
• Ensure data retention compliance and a corporate record is maintained including recording of the meeting minutes and any decisions made by the Board.
• Preparation of Board papers and Chair's briefing in advance of meetings. This includes liaising with other policy teams, Office of the Chief Designer's team and external networks to ensure accessible and accurate papers are produced.
• Stakeholder management for clinical and professional representatives involved in integrated health and social care, including through supporting the Minister for Social Care in their engagements.
• Contribute to the effective running of the NCS Advisory Board, including supporting the establishment of new sub-groups and contributing to the review of the surrounding governance.
• Contribute to effective programme management, updating risk registers and providing advice to SMT Delivery as relevant.
• Provide MiCase, PQs, briefing contributions and FOI requests, as and when appropriate, ensuring these are responded to within the set deadlines.
• Line Management responsibility for Policy Officers in the Team.

Success profile

Success profiles are specific to each job and they include the mix of skills, experience and behaviours candidates will be assessed on.

Behaviours:

• Seeing the Big Picture - Level 3
• Changing and Improving - Level 3
• Communicating and Influencing - Level 3
• Working Together - Level 3

You can find out more about Success Profiles here: Success profiles: candidate guide.

How to apply

Apply online, providing a CV and Supporting Statement of no more than 750 words which provides evidence of how you meet the skills, experience and behaviours listed in the Success Profile above. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be used to support your application, but all statements and examples provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, and presented as your own) applications will be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.

Please see our candidate guidance for more information on acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI in recruitment. If invited for further assessment, this will consist of an interview and presentation. Assessments are scheduled for w/c early February 2026 however this may be subject to change.

Qualifications

About us

The Scottish Government is the devolved government for Scotland. We have responsibility for a wide range of key policy areas including: education, health, the economy, justice, housing and transport. We offer rewarding careers and employ people across Scotland in a wide range of professions and roles. Our staff are part of the UK Civil Service, working for Ministers and senior stakeholders to deliver vital public services which improve the lives of the people of Scotland. We offer a supportive and inclusive working environment along with a wide range of employee benefits. Find out more about what we offer.

As part of the UK Civil Service, we uphold the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

Job Location

This post is based in St Andrew's House in Edinburgh, with an option to work from Atlantic Quay, Glasgow. In line with our current ways of working, our team follows a hybrid working approach, where colleagues use a mix of 40% office based and remote working (working from home). The Team has an anchor day in St Andrew's House every Wednesday. The Post will also require in person support for Advisory Board meetings in both Edinburgh and Glasgow approximately every second month.

The post is offered as a full-time role, but staff with different working patterns are invited to apply, and we will assess proposed working patterns against the business requirements for this post.

Working pattern

Our standard hours are 35 hours per week and we offer a range of flexible working options depending on the needs of the role. From October 2025, the Scottish Government will require staff in hybrid-compatible roles to work in-person 40% of the time, either in an office or other agreed work location. If you have specific questions about the role you are applying for, please contact us.

Security checks

Successful candidates must complete the Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS), before they can be appointed. BPSS is comprised of four main pre-employment checks – Identity, Right to work, Employment History and a Criminal Record check (unspent convictions). You can find out more about BPSS on the UK Government website, or read about the different levels of security checks in our Candidate Guide.

Equality statement

We are committed to equality and inclusion and we aim to recruit a diverse workforce that reflects the population of our nation. Find out more about our commitment to diversity and how we offer and support recruitment adjustments for anyone who needs them.

Further information

Find out more about our organisation, what we offer staff members and how to apply on our Careers Website. Read our Candidate Guide for further information on our recruitment and application processes. Further information about this opportunity is available from Jamie Begbie and Stine Nielsen. Apply before 23:59 on 19th January. This post is open to internal candidates and Common Citizenship Organisations only. External candidates and staff from UK Other Government Departments are not eligible to apply for this vacancy.