Role: INSPECTOR

Click here for the supplementary advert for the Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) expansion.

Location:     

  • EARLY LEARNING & CHILDCARE (ELC): Scotland wide
  • CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE (CYP): Edinburgh or Stirling Areas (applicants with residential childcare or social work experience).
  • ADULTS: Aberdeen (inspection only) and Edinburgh (complaints and inspection)

Salary: £31,083 - £39,069 plus excellent benefits

Hours: 140 hours to be worked over a 4-week period

Contract: Permanent or 2 year secondment

Join us and make a difference – for you, for everyone

It’s our job to ensure care for everyone, everywhere in Scotland is as good as it can be. If you are as passionate about high-quality care as we are, and you’re experienced in your field, we’d love to hear from you.

About us

As a national scrutiny body that supports improvement. We inspect care services and partnerships across Scotland, report on the quality of care people experience, and support improvements in services to facilitate improvements in outcomes for people.

We inspect care services individually. We also work with other scrutiny bodies to inspect the social care and social work services people are experiencing in local areas.

We champion high-quality care whenever we encounter it across the thousands of inspections, we carry out each year, and we work closely with all care providers to support them to improve all the time. We collaborate with other organisations too, supporting improvement across public services. Our work plays a big role in reducing health and social inequalities between people and communities.

We are looking for talented people to join us in making a difference - specialists who understand how to put people’s needs, rights and choices at the heart of delivering social services – and how to lead improvement too. Our 600 staff work with services across the public, voluntary and private sectors. We have offices across Scotland and many of our staff work from home.

About you

Whether early or established in your career, you will share our determination that care, social work and justice services should work well for people – every time. You’ll be confident about what good-quality care looks like and how to deliver it. You’ll be good at analysing information and evidence. You will have excellent writing skills for narrative inspection reports that are clear, concise and focused on outcomes. You will be confident in working with a wide range of people and at supporting and advising on improvement.

You’ll currently be working, or have significant experience in, social care, social work, health, children’s services, early learning, child protection, or community learning and development. You will be registered or eligible to register with a professional body like the SSSC, NMC or GTC.

About the roles

Our care inspectors work with care services: childminders, nurseries, care homes, care at home, housing support and a host of other specialist services. A specialist in your field, you may have helped lead a service and have a strong track record in delivering quality. You’ll be adept at leading improvement and influencing others. You will work with people experiencing care, and care service providers, managers and staff.

Why join us?

We strive to be a great employer, knowing that competitive salary, leave and pension schemes are only part of that. We pride ourselves on the values we hold, person-centred; fairness; respect; efficiency and integrity - all supported with a culture of care and kindness.

We believe in collective leadership and innovation. You’ll have a lot of autonomy to manage your own work and use the professional skills you’ve honed during your career – but in new ways. Starting on day one, our learning and development support will help you become confident in the craft of scrutiny and in supporting improvement. Because a lot of your role is about sharing effective practice across Scotland, the impact you can have on experiences and outcomes for people is significant. You will draw on management and leadership skills you’ve developed in the past.

We’re proud to be a progressive, supportive employer – we’re happy to talk about flexible working with you and we’re members of the Disability Confident Scheme, aiming to make the most of the talents disabled people can bring to the workplace.

Criteria to apply

  • We require you to hold a relevant qualification (minimum SCQF Level 9), register with either the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) or any other relevant professional body and undertake PVG checks.
  • You must also be prepared to do a Professional Development Award in Scrutiny and Improvement (Social Services) at SCQF level 10 with appropriate support from the organisation.
  • You will have a minimum of three years recent and demonstrable management experience in a relevant field. You must also be willing to travel with overnight stays as required.

New appointments will normally be placed on the minimum grade for the role; a higher starting salary may be offered in exceptional circumstances only.

Job Profile

Person Specification

List of relevant qualifications

Before you apply

  • Please contact the relevant body directly to resolve any queries you have regarding registration or eligible qualifications for registration (SSSC, NMC and so on) before submitting your application.
  • For an informal chat about the job role only, please contact
    • Charlotte Wilson, Service Manager on 07870991284 for CYP
    • Kim Connolly, Team Manager on 07766133161(available from 13 July 2019) or Mary Morris, Team Manager, on 07766133154 for ELC
    • Mike McKelvey. Team Manager, on 07766992656 for Adults inspection
    • Kenny Campbell, Team Manager, on 07766133059 for Complaints.
  • For all other queries, please contact Human Resources at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

To apply

  • First, please go through these gateway questions then, if you meet the minimum criteria and gain access to our application form, you will be able to complete an application.
  • Your completed application form (campaign number C19 only forms) and equal opportunities form should be returned to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. no later than Monday, 22 July 2019 at 8.00am.
  • We anticipate that selection days will take place in the week commencing Monday, 26 August 2019.

At interview

  • We will expect shortlisted candidates to evidence their knowledge, skills and experience in relation to the minimum criteria outlined on the person specification for the role.