Job Description

Please request an application form to complete and email back to Dunfermline Advocacy. DO NOT SUBMIT CV AS IT WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Interviews will take place at the DA Office on Tuesday 20th May.

This post will require the successful candidate to have a PVG check completed in respect of Children and Vulnerable Adults before commencing.

Overview

Guiding Values & Principles:

Dunfermline Advocacy (DA) requires that every member of staff is committed to promoting the values of inclusion and equality of opportunity. DA expects that all members of staff will hold central to their practice the ethos and principles of Citizen Advocacy.

Salary:

22, 187 (27, 733 FTE)

Hours:

Part time 28 hours per week.

Duration:

The post is for 9 months in the first instance, with the intention that it will continue subject to funding.

Location: Hybrid

option for some homeworking along with use of DA office. Much of the work is face to face meetings across West Fife with people using the resource.

Purpose of Job:

The post holder will support vulnerable adults and older people in West Fife who require and would benefit from relationship-based advocacy support, Citizen Advocacy, to realise their rights and to tackle loneliness and isolation. The post holder will support people accessing the service, providing direct advocacy support where appropriate, prior to matching each person with a volunteer Citizen Advocate. The post holder will be responsible for recruiting local volunteers as part of a small development team.

The post holder will also undertake work supporting the Chief Executive to source and apply for funding to continue the work of the Friendship Changing Lives Project and to support the maintenance and sustainable growth of the wider organisation.

Main Responsibilities/Duties

Supporting Vulnerable People

1. Identify vulnerable adults and older people who are in need of support and would benefit from having a Citizen Advocate

2. Gain knowledge and understanding of their circumstances, personality, background, needs and wishes with a view to determining their advocacy needs & aspirations

3. Provide relevant advocacy support to each individual as required prior to being matched with a volunteer Citizen Advocate

4.Support people to develop their own outcomes from being involved with the project- including short, medium and long-term outcomes as appropriate

Volunteers

1. Work with the Development Team to recruit local people to volunteer

2. Screen and select responsible local people to become volunteer Citizen Advocates including taking up of references and completing a PVG application

3. Provide comprehensive training to potential Citizen Advocates, including providing them with a thorough understanding of the principles of Citizen Advocacy

4. Create Citizen Advocacy relationships between adults and older people with learning disabilities and the recruited volunteers

5. Provide ongoing support, information and training to volunteers and to Citizen Advocacy Partnerships

Project Development

1. Develop links with local services and communities in West Fife with particular reference to vulnerable adults and older people.

2. Use DA's current working relationships with statutory services, Fife Council, NHS Fife, local service providers and groups to raise awareness of the project and to ensure appropriate referrals.

3. Work with the team to develop appropriate marketing materials and plans to raise community awareness for people who could access the project.

4. Contribute to creating content for and posting to DA's social media platforms

5. Keep up to date with developments in the local communities of West Fife, and best practice in Independent Advocacy and Health & Social Care

Income Generation

1. Working with the Chief Executive, identify funding opportunities for the Friendship Changing Lives Project and DA in general.

2. Contribute to bid writing for grant/trust funding

3. Investigate and develop imaginative fundraising activities

4. Develop and broaden corporate support

5. Develop and coordinate web-based fundraising including social media

General Responsibilities

1. Confidentiality: Always ensure confidentiality, only releasing confidential or personalised information externally with prior consent from a line manager.

2. Data Protection: To comply with the requirements of relevant data protection legislation and its amendments to ensure integrity and security of information entrusted to DA.

3. Safeguarding: Provide leadership in ensuring the organisational and individual statutory and organisational responsibilities are met in respect of safeguarding vulnerable adults.

4. Conflict of interest: All applicants to any post within DA are required to declare any involvement either directly or indirectly with any firm, company or organisation that has a contract with DA. Failure to do so may result in an application being rejected or dismissal after appointment.

5. Equal Opportunities and Diversity: To ensure that all service users, their partners and carers, colleagues both in Dunfermline Advocacy and other partner organisations are treated as individuals within Dunfermline Advocacy's Diversity and Equality framework.

6. Health and Safety: Compliance at all times with the requirements of the Health and Safety regulations and DA's Health and Safety Policy and Procedures, ensuring reasonable care is taken with regard to yourself as well as any colleague, service user or visitor who might be affected by an act or failure to act by you.

7. Quality Assurance: To ensure all activities are delivered in a way that supports and maintains DA's registration with OSCR and the Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance as a full member.

8. Any Other duties: To undertake any other duties that are reasonable and are commensurate with the role as directed by the Chief Executive in line with the changing needs of the service and legal requirements.

9. To develop your own knowledge and practice, attend supervision and team meetings to fulfil your role as an effective member of the team.

10. Self-Development: To ensure continuous professional development both personally and professionally through training supervision and other appropriate methods

Person Specification

Education/ Qualifications

Essential

A relevant degree or equivalent experience

Evidence of continuous professional development in relevant areas.

Experience

Essential

Evidence of experience in Community Work/Development

Experience of using Office 365

Experience of using social media channels

Writing funding applications and/or project reports

Desirable

Experience of working in the not for profit sector

Experience of working with vulnerable people

Experience of working in an advocacy organisation

Skills/Ability/ Knowledge

Essential

Good Understanding of Advocacy in its various forms, and a strong commitment to the principles of Citizen Advocacy

Demonstrable experience of recruiting, training and supporting volunteers

Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to work with different teams, and work collaboratively to solve problems.

Excellent written and oral communications skills, including proven ability to communicate using appropriate styles, methods and timing, to maximise understanding and impact.

Proven ability to keep up to date with technology and take individual responsibility for learning new technologies

Imagination and creative thinking.

Proven time management and organisational skills

Awareness of the challenges faced by people with multiple and complex needs and the ability to work effectively with this group of people.

Demonstrate the ability to work effectively with people from a range ethnic, cultural, social, gender, age, religious and sexual orientation backgrounds.

Ability to work both alone and in a team environment.

Excellent IT skills, including Office 365, Zoom, Teams & use of social media platforms

Desirable

Previous line management/ volunteer management experience

Good knowledge of the West Fife area and its local communities

Existing networks and connections in West Fife

Personal Circumstances

Essential

Location Base: Hybrid DA office/home working, with frequent in person meetings every week across West Fife and occasionally wider in Fife or the central belt.

In person Team meetings on Wednesdays at DA Office

A full UK driving licence and use of a car (or access to suitable alternative if unable to drive due to disability)

Willingness to work unsocial hours occasionally to meet needs of people using the service, volunteers or to meet deadlines

Job Types: Part-time, Temp to perm
Contract length: 9 months

Pay: 22,186.00 per year

Expected hours: 28 per week

Benefits:

Company pension
Schedule:

Monday to Friday
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Dunfermline KY12 7QX

Application deadline: 12/05/2025
Expected start date: 01/07/2025