Are you passionate about Human Rights?

Do you want to help improve the realisation of Human Rights for everyone in Scotland?

Do you have the skills, values, experience and expertise to help make that happen?

Are you interested in strengthening Scotland’s National Human Rights Institution?

If so, you could be just what we are looking for!

The Scottish Human Rights Commission (SHRC) is Scotland’s human rights watchdog.

We are an independent, expert body that works with and for the people of Scotland; we monitor, listen, and speak up for all our rights and respond when things go wrong. We are a public body created by statute, with a mandate to protect and promote the human rights of all people in Scotland.

The Commission is established as a National Human Rights Institution. As such we are part of a global network of bodies accredited by the United Nations to monitor state compliance with international and national human rights law and treaties. We are independent of government. It is the job of National Human Rights Institutions to use the rule of law to promote and protect the human rights of all of the people who live in any given country and assess the actions of the state on that basis. This is how the Scottish Human Rights Commission approaches its work

We have a number of opportunities for people who share our values and passion for human rights to join our growing team. We are a small organisation with big ambition to use our mandate to further the realisation of people’s human rights in Scotland, and these key strategic posts, working together with colleagues across the Commission, will be integral to our success over the coming years.

The Commission is recruiting for four positions.

This follows an expansion of our mandate with the enactment of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024; investment in the development of a People and Culture Programme that will enable us to conclude the implementation of our Independent Governance Review from 2023; and to fill a vacancy following the upcoming departure of a member of the team.

In April, the Commission embarked on its new 4-year Strategic Plan for 2024-28, focused on standing up for those in need of protection and holding those responsible for human rights to account.  This requires us to build a Commission team infrastructure that is equipped to deliver this, and the current opportunities will support us to enhance our engagement with the Scottish Parliament, the media, and the application of the law through strategic litigation and monitoring of human rights across Scotland.

The Commission is committed to being agile, engaged, accessible, open to collaboration and above all visibly committed to the realisation of rights in Scotland, as an authoritative and challenging partner in pursuit of that goal.

These posts are a critical to enhancing the skills and capacity of our existing team in order to achieve the Commission’s goals.

The four posts are

• Interim Head of Legal and Policy
• Legal and Policy Coordinator – UNCRC (temporary, 2 years)
• People and Culture Manager (temporary, 1 year)
• Interim Head of Communications and Engagement

 Before applying for any of these posts, please read our Strategic Plan 2024-28, Operational Plan 2024-25, and Annual Report 2023-24.

If you have any problems accessing these documents, or any of the application information, please contact recruitment@scottishhumanrights.com. BSL users can contact us directly by using Contact Scotland BSL 

Vacancies

Interim Head of Legal and Policy

• Full time (37 hours per week)
• Temporary - 12-month contract – secondment opportunities very welcome
• Grade 5 (£65,800 plus 5% responsibility allowance)
• Based in Edinburgh, Hybrid working available.

This is a critical post for the Commission, and will be central in strengthening the impact of the Commission in informing the human rights legal and policy framework and for the progressive realisation of rights in the everyday lives of people in Scotland

Reporting to the Executive Director, this is a key leadership role with responsibility for ensuring organisational effectiveness of the legal and policy function and as an integral part of the Senior Leadership Team as the Commission delivers its People and Culture plan in 2025. The post holder will effectively lead and manage the Legal and Policy Team to deliver its core work programmes of advice to Parliament, international treaty monitoring, spotlight monitoring, and strategic litigation opportunities via the Commission’s powers to uphold human rights.  The role will be responsible for quality assurance of legal and policy outputs in addition to ensuring delivery of key commitments in the Commissions Strategic Plan.

Closing date for applications: 9.00am, Monday 20 January 2025

Interview date:  W/C 10 February, tbc

Please note that CVs will not be accepted, and applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

To apply, download the forms below and email your completed application form and equalities form to recruitment@scottishhumanrights.com. BSL users can contact us directly by using Contact Scotland BSL. If you encounter any accessibility issues, please contact us.

Recruitment Pack | Application form | Equalities form

Legal and Policy Coordinator UNCRC

• Full time (37 hours per week)
• Temporary – 2-year contract, with possibility of extension
• Salary: Grade 4 (£43,764 - £52,183)
• Based in Edinburgh, Hybrid working available

About the Role

This is a truly exciting opportunity to play a central role within the Commission as it deploys it legal powers, focusing on developing and ensuring delivery of SHRC’s new legal powers and duties under the recently enacted United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024 (the “Act”).

We are looking for someone to join our legal and policy team who has experience of strategic litigation to uphold human rights, gained in a variety of settings.  With a background in law and policy, in addition to a working knowledge of human rights, and particularly the rights of the child in a domestic context, your skills will be utilised to lead on interventions, develop proposals for potential areas of own name litigation under the UNCRC Act 2024, monitor human rights court judgements for the Commission, and manage live cases. You will also be responsible for liaising and developing a network with a variety of stakeholders, including people who are experiencing human rights violations, civil society advocacy organisations, the Courts, Law Centres, and the Law Society.

You will uphold the SHRC’s values and be confident representing the Commission with external audiences.

Closing date for applications: 9.00am, Monday 20 January 2025

Interview date:  W/C 17 February 2025, tbc

Please note that CVs will not be accepted, and applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

To apply, download the forms below and email your completed application form and equalities form to recruitment@scottishhumanrights.com. BSL users can contact us directly by using Contact Scotland BSL. If you encounter any accessibility issues, please contact us.

Recruitment Pack | Application form | Equalities form

People and Culture Manager (temporary)

• Full time (37 hours per week)
• Fixed Term 1 Year
• Grade 4 (£43,764 - £52,183)
• Based in Edinburgh, Hybrid working available

About the Role

The People and Culture Manager is a unique and exciting role that provides the post holder an opportunity to make a positive difference to how Scotland’s human rights watchdog evolves and develops to maximise its impact to promote the human rights of everyone in Scotland through a strong, skilled and well supported staff team. You will be at the centre of developing initiatives to lead a programme of culture and organisational development in order to fulfil key recommendations of the Independent Governance Review 2023 and take the Commission forward.

Reporting to the Head of Business Support and working closely with the Executive Director, with a strong background in people management, experience of cultural change and trade union liaison, and an ability to coordinate activities across a number of teams with diverse resources, you will utilise your skills to meet key deliverables, including coordinating an organisational development programme, reviewing and developing HR policies and updating the employee handbook.

You will be skilled in collaborative and partnership working and effective engagement with stakeholders, managing positive relationships with all staff members, senior leadership team and trade union partners. You will demonstrate your alignment with the Commission’s core values through your inputs and behaviours to these interactions.

This is an exciting opportunity for a dynamic individual to embed the Commission’s values into working practices and implement progressive and impactful change across the organisation.

Closing date for applications: 9.00am, Monday 20 January 2025

Interview date:  W/C 10 February 2025, tbc

Please note that CVs will not be accepted, and applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

To apply, download the forms below and email your completed application form and equalities form to recruitment@scottishhumanrights.com. BSL users can contact us directly by using Contact Scotland BSL. If you encounter any accessibility issues, please contact us.

Recruitment Pack | Application form | Equalities form

Interim Head of Communications and Engagement

• Full time (37 hours per week)
• Fixed Term 1 Year – secondment opportunities are very welcome
• Grade 5 (£54,792- £65,800)
• Based in Edinburgh, Hybrid working available

About the Role

This key post is central to articulating the Commission’s role as Scotland’s human rights watchdog, promoting awareness and understanding of human rights, through the effective development and delivery of the Communication and Engagement strategy.

Reporting to the Executive Director, the role requires an individual with expert level skills across the communications mix of public affairs, corporate communications, media and digital, who can lead a team and empower a shared tone of voice and brand promotion across the organisation, and who can create and deliver strategic communications with purpose and impact. Experience of this gained in a related policy discipline would be welcome.  You will lead and influence core messaging and its deployment across multiple channels to maximise exposure and awareness of the Commission’s purpose and outputs. A central feature of the role will be to coordinate activities and resources across the workforce, working closely with the Head of Legal and Policy to ensure effective communications programmes and plans are developed and implemented effectively across all of our core activities.

You will be responsible for developing and embedding the voice of the Commission aligned to its Strategic Plan 2024-28 and play a central role in shaping the Commissions strategic outputs.

As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, you will, provide leadership and management to the organisation as the Commission delivers its People and Culture plan in 2025. In addition, you will directly lead and manage the Commission’s Communications Team, ensuring they have effective management direction, support and development as required.

Closing date for applications: 9.00am, Monday 20 January 2025

Interview date:  W/C 24 February 2025, tbc

Please note that CVs will not be accepted, and applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

To apply, download the forms below and email your completed application form and equalities form to recruitment@scottishhumanrights.com. BSL users can contact us directly by using Contact Scotland BSL. If you encounter any accessibility issues, please contact us.

Recruitment Pack | Application form | Equalities form

Contract research

From time to time we contract research projects to external specialists. If you are a research consultant and would like to be considered for future opportunities, please complete our research database form.

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