Work with us
Who we are and what we do
As the scrutiny and improvement body for social care and social work in Scotland, we exist to ensure services are of the highest quality and meet people’s needs.
The Care Inspectorate is a dynamic and rewarding place to work. Our staff are passionate, talented and knowledgeable with experience from a range of different backgrounds. We share a common commitment to high-quality care and we make a real difference to people’s lives.
If you want to make a difference and champion high-quality care that meets the needs, rights and choices of people across Scotland, join us at the Care Inspectorate.
Whatever role you have, your experience and contributions are valued, and you will be a vital part of our unique and influential organisation.
Our values are at the heart of our organisation and guide everything we do. You can find more about our values in our Strategic Workforce Plan.
Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion
We want future employees to understand and recognise the importance we give to equality, diversity and inclusion and we would like to attract candidates who can demonstrate this commitment too.
As a human rights organisation, we recognise that people living with protected characteristics can face multiple barriers to employment. We will take evidence-based positive action steps to ensure our workforce is diverse and inclusive and respecting of human rights. This aligns with the aims of the Equality Act 2010.
We are committed to recruiting a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve, therefore by gathering data, we can evaluate the effectiveness of our recruitment processes in achieving this aim.
Please read our Equality, diversity and inclusion statement of intent.
We value, celebrate and fully embrace the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion for everyone.
We want to increase the diversity of our workforce. We especially welcome applications from people with disabilities, people with care experience, people from a minority ethnic background, people of all ages, men (we currently have 79% female workforce) and people from the lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans community. We want a workforce that reflects the wider Scottish population that we serve.
We are committed to supporting the Young Person's Guarantee and work closely with Skills Development Scotland to offer modern apprenticeships.
Disability confident - guaranteed interview scheme
The Care Inspectorate has achieved Disability Confident Level 2 status (The Employer Award). We are continuing to take steps to help disabled people to fulfil their potential. 
In practical terms this means, if a candidate has a disability and meets our essential criteria for a job, they are eligible through the guaranteed interview scheme and would automatically be shortlisted for interview. It also means that we will plan for, and make reasonable adjustments to, the assessment and interview process – for example, small things such as allowing candidates to complete a written test using a computer or by giving more time can make a substantial difference to how well a candidate can perform at interview. We will also make sure that people involved in the interviewing process understand the Disability Confident commitment and know how to offer and make adjustments.
Our action plan will be collaborated on and shared to ensure we commit to the level 2 status. Further information about the Disability Confident Award and what this means is available on their website.
Care experienced - guaranteed interview scheme
We recognise care experience as someone who has been formally looked after by a local authority, in the family home (with support from social services or a social worker), in kinship care with family, friends or relatives (including informal kinship care), foster care, residential or secure care or legally adopted.
We want to encourage applications from individuals who are care experienced, enabling access to employment, education, experiences, and volunteering opportunities.
We are committed to offering care experienced candidates an automatic interview if they meet the essential criteria detailed in the job profile. It could also mean that we will plan for, and make reasonable adjustments to, the assessment and interview process, for example, allowing candidates to see the interview questions in advance of the interview, or by asking questions in a different way. These small adjustments can make a substantial difference to how well a care experienced candidate can perform at interview, for instance help with travelling to interview, adjusting timing and format of interview. We will also make sure that people involved in the interviewing process understand our commitment to care experienced people and know how to support the adjustments, not only at the recruitment stage but during employment too.
Support can be provided where a care experienced candidate has given consent. Individuals can choose to disclose whether they are care experienced or not; and choose to accept additional support or not at any stage of recruitment and or employment. Where support is requested, we are able to deliver tailored support in an appropriate way.
If you are care experienced and need support prior to applying or with the application process, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. For support with the interview process and/or during employment, please note this on your application form.
Minority Ethnic Communities
We are committed to initiatives to create organizational, culture change around race equality to foster an environment which encourages diversity, including activity around anti-racism in the workplace. We have been working with the Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Organisations (CEMVO) Scotland on our race equality in employment plan.
We work collaboratively with our staff networks and through various equality working groups.
- Corporate equality group
- Carers group
- Care experienced staff group
- Disability joint working group
- LGBT Charter group
- Race equality in employment group
People of all ages and Young Persons Guarantee
We encourage applications from all ages and want a workforce that reflects the wider population that we serve. We especially welcome applications from young people to align with our commitment to the Young Persons Guarantee in providing opportunities for young individuals to secure employment or training. We recognise by diversifying the age demographic within our workforce this will contribute to building a stronger, more resilient workforce for the future and acknowledge our vital role in creating opportunities for Young People as they prepare for and take their first steps into the world of work.
As a human rights organisation, we recognise that protected characteristic groups face multiple barriers in the employment sector. We take evidence-based positive action steps to ensure our workforce/volunteers is diverse and inclusive and respecting human rights. This aligns with the aims/commitments of the Equality Act 2010.
Awards and charters
We are proud to have achieved a number of awards and accreditations of recognition and accomplishment. We believe that the work undertaken and time invested in attaining these awards and accreditations grows and embeds and inclusive culture within the Care Inspectorate. These also represent our commitment to embracing best practices and our responsibility to keeping our skills and knowledge up-to-date.
You can click here to view all of our awards and charters.
More than just a job
We’ve got a lot to offer and you’ll be joining a great team where you’ll be able to contribute right from the start.
We’re passionate about our work and making a difference
Our expert workforce champions high-quality care and we work collaboratively with other organisations and the care sector to share good practice and support and spread improvement and innovation across Scotland. We also use the evidence and intelligence we gather to help shape and influence local and national policy and practice.
We value and listen to our staff so we can learn together
We work hard to make sure everyone feels involved and appreciated, with a sense of belonging. Learning and improvement are at the heart of what we do. We go out of our way to listen to all of our staff and act on what they say, so we can learn and improve together.
We invest in our staff to make sure you can give your best
We know that to perform at our best we need great people. So, we provide training and support you to be the best you can be and provide opportunities to learn, develop and share your skills and experience with others. You can also participate in our coaching programme which offers access to one off or blocks of coaching with a coach of your choice.
If you’re registered with a professional body, we provide support for continuing professional development (CPD) and
re-validation. Everyone participates in regular supervision through our LEAD (learn, experience, achieve and development) performance and development process.
If you join us as an inspector, we will also offer you an accredited and highly respected professional qualification through our scrutiny and improvement practice development award.
We’ll make sure you fit right in
You will be warmly welcomed and have access to a range of activities including induction to your team, the organisation and your role. We offer a friendly and supportive place to work, where our values underpin the work we do and how we work together. Find out more about our induction process here.
We work hard to create a healthy working environment where your wellbeing is supported
We encourage a healthy work-life balance. We have a number of policies in place that support flexible working and time off when you need it, such as flexi-time, flexible hours, home/hybrid working, carers leave and special leave. The vast majority of our people work flexibly and value how this supports their work-life balance. We also offer access to a wide range of wellbeing initiatives, including specialist webinars, videos, podcasts, counselling, a listening service and access to the unmind app.
As we open up our offices again, you’ll be able to work from home and the office, as part of our hybrid working model.
Total rewards package
We offer an excellent total rewards package – it is a comprehensive and strategic approach to employee compensation and benefits, that aligns with the Care Inspectorates’ aims. It encompasses various elements that will contribute to your overall employee experience, including compensation, benefits, work-life balance, and development.
Please see our total rewards package.
Our offices
We have offices all over Scotland.
Sign up to our enewsletter and select ‘vacancies’ as a topic of interest to stay updated with our vacancies.
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Consultations
We are committed to consulting with all our stakeholders about our work. We value your thoughts and welcome any comments that you have.
Sign up to our consultation platform to stay up to date with all our open consultations.
Open consultations
Shared inspection framework for ELC services including childminding and school-aged childcare
The Care Inspectorate and Education Scotland are working together to progress the development of a shared inspection framework. We would very much welcome your insights and contributions and invite you to answer four short questions to let us know what is most important to you when considering the development of a shared inspection framework. You can take part in this consultation here.
Closed consultations
Depriving and restricting liberty for children and young people in care home, school care and secure accommodation services
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation. We will review this feedback and issue a repsonse shortly.
Staffing method framework
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation. We will review this feedback and issue a repsonse shortly.
Mainstream Boarding Schools and School Hostels Design Guide
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation. We will review this feedback and issue a repsonse shortly.
Review of our Technology and Digital Opportunities Guide
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation between March 21 and April 11 2021. You can review the feedback from this consultation here.
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation between October 26 and November 28 2021. We will review this feedback and issue a repsonse shortly.
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation between November 8 and December 5 2021. You can review the feedback from this consultation here.
Care Homes for Adults – The Design Guide and Care Homes for Children and Young People – The Design Guide
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the above consultation between 21 June and 19 July 2021. You can review the feedback from this consultation, and our response to the feedback below:
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Our staff
Our workforce is highly skilled and experienced in all aspects of social care. Over 600 staff work across Scotland, inspecting thousands of services.
Our inspectors work in specialist national teams that allow best practice to be shared across the country. We also want to make sure that the people inspecting care services have frontline experience in the same sector.
We believe that people in Scotland should experience a better quality of life as a result of accessible, excellent services that are designed and delivered to reflect their individual needs and promote their rights.
Our values are:
1. Person-centered: we will put people at the heart of everything we do
2. Fairness: we will act fairly, be transparent and treat people equally
3. Respect: we will be respectful in all that we do
4. Integrity: we will be impartial and act to improve care for the people of Scotland
5. Efficiency: we will provide the best possible quality and public value from our work
6. Equality: we will promote and advance equality, diversity and inclusion in all our work and interactions
Our 11 offices are based throughout the country from the Borders right up to the Shetlands Isles. Find an office near you.
It is important to remember that all Care Inspectorate staff carry identification and you should ask to see this. If you are not sure of the person who has called or visited you, you should call us on 0345 600 9527 to confirm their identity.
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Volunteering
Become a young inspection volunteer
We inspect care and social work services to make sure they are high quality and meet the needs of people who use them. We believe we can make care better by working with people who have personal experience of care.
Our involvement and equalities charter outlines how we involve people who use care services and informal carers in our work.
If you have personal experience of using a service or you have cared for someone close who has used a service, there are many ways you can get involved with us. You do not have to have any qualifications. You must be aged between 18-27 to apply.
How to apply
You can apply to become a young inspection volunteer by completing our application form:
- online (Microsoft Forms)
- by printing a paper copy (PDF) and posting it to Participation and Equalities Team, Compass House, 11 Riverside Drive, Dundee, DD1 4NY
- or we can support you to submit an application.
For more information you can download our information leaflet.
Hear what some of our young inspection volunteers said below.
If you would like to find out more about becoming a young inspection volunteer, need help to complete the application form or would like us to post you an application form - please email Julie Brown at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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About us
The Care Inspectorate is a scrutiny body which supports improvement. That means we look at the quality of care in Scotland to ensure it meets high standards. Where we find that improvement is needed, we support services to make positive changes.
Our vision is that everyone experiences safe, high-quality care that meets their needs, rights and choices.
Our 600 staff work across Scotland, specialising in health and social care, early learning and childcare, social work, children’s services, and community justice.
Meet our Board and our senior leadership team.
We inspect individual care services
We register more than 11,000 registered care services in Scotland and our inspectors visit every one. Higher-risk services are inspected more often. Our inspectors talk to people using the service, staff and managers. We want to make sure that people experience high-quality care, and that care services are making a positive impact on people’s lives, based on their needs, rights and choices.
We give care services grades when we inspect them, and look at key areas like care and support, physical environment, quality of staffing, and quality of management and leadership. Each area of each care service is assessed on a scale from 1 to 6, where 1 in unsatisfactory and 6 is excellent. After every inspection, we publish an inspection report showing our findings, which is helpful if you are using service or thinking of doing so.
We inspect how care is provided across areas
We work with other scrutiny and improvement bodies to look at how local authorities, community planning partnerships and health and social care partnerships are delivering a range of services in their communities across Scotland. These inspections look at how well services are working together to support positive experiences and outcomes for people. This helps partnerships understand what is working well, and what needs to improve. You can read our joint inspection reports here.
Supporting improvement and driving up standards
Our job is not just to inspect care, but help the quality improve where needed. This means we work with services and support them, offering advice, guidance and sharing good practice to help care reach the highest standards. You can find lots of advice for care professionals on our dedicated website, The Hub.
We want everyone to experience high-quality care that meets their individual needs. Scotland’s Health and Social Care Standards describe what people should expect from care. The Standards are what we refer to when we are assessing how well care is performing.
What if things are not good enough?
If we find that care isn’t good enough, we take action. We can make recommendations for improvement and issue requirements for change and check these have happened. If a care service doesn’t improve, we can carry out enforcement action including, as a last resort, closing it down subject to the decision of a sheriff.
If you think a care service isn’t good enough you can share your concern or make a complaint to us. Find out more about concerns and complaints here.
The Scottish Regulators’ Strategic Code of Practice
The Care Inspectorate is required by the Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 to follow the Scottish Regulators’ Strategic Code. The Code is issued by the Scottish Ministers and sets out the approaches we should take in dealing with those we regulate. We comply with the requirements of the Code in all that we do, ensuring that we always prioritise the safety, health and wellbeing of vulnerable people over commercial or business interests.
Care services in Scotland must be registered with the Care Inspectorate and a broad range of the individuals who work in those services must be registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). You can find more information about the SSSC on their website.
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