Strategic Communications Lead
- Salary
- £62.1K–£77.4K
- Hiring from
- United Kingdom
- Work type
- Hybrid
- Posted
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Be part of a statutory public inquiry to keep children safer in the future.
The Strategic Communications Lead will be responsible for a discrete area of work, have a key role in shaping the Inquiry’s communications, and have full accountability for hearing delivery, including advising on external content and opportunities to raise awareness of the Inquiry’s work.
You will need to be a creative thinker who works well across a large team setting, able to take conceptual ideas and suggest ways of presenting them in an accessible way using the most appropriate channels, based on an understanding of audiences. You will also play a key role in responding to and dealing with enquiries and information requests from the public.
This is a challenging post requiring good interpersonal skills and close working with the Inquiry’s Senior Management, broader Inquiry teams and witnesses, to identify and present key messages in a positive light, while ensuring that the public and other key stakeholders are kept up to date and informed on the work of the Inquiry.
The Jay Inquiry is a statutory public inquiry set up under the Inquiries Act 2005 to investigate group based sexual abuse and exploitation of children in Scotland, examine institutional responses to it and make recommendations to better protect children both now and in the future. The inquiry is independent of Scottish Ministers, meaning that the direction and functioning of the inquiry is for its Chair.
When announcing the setting up of the inquiry in early 2026, the Cabinet Secretary for Education stated that “survivors of abuse want to see accountability and improvement delivered as quickly as possible, and that sense of urgency is shared by the Scottish Government. We are determined to act decisively to protect children from the horrendous harm of child sexual abuse and exploitation."
The terms of reference are intentionally broad in nature following discussions with survivors and survivor groups and in order to allow the Chair, Professor Alexis Jay, to set out lines of enquiry that best fulfil the remit. In determining those lines of enquiry, the Chair wishes to hear from survivors.
The Inquiry aims to uphold the highest standards of independence and impartiality. Before applying, all candidates are asked to consider if their career history gives rise to any conflict of interest with the Inquiry’s Terms of Reference.
- Manage the Inquiry’s day-to-day communications, providing advice and guidance on media handling, develop communication plans and strategies to engage with the general public, witnesses, and stakeholders.
- Promote the work of the Inquiry to develop transparent, authoritative, accurate, and accessible content and identify engagement opportunities.
- Provide communications advice to the Chair, Secretary, and the Inquiry team with particular regard to the application of the Inquiries Act 2005 and the Inquiries (Scotland) Rules 2007.
- Facilitating cross-communications working that brings together all disciplines to plan and deliver on cross-cutting issues; identifying and delivering materials and processes that can ensure and support consistency of messaging across communications outputs.
- Provide oversight of the Inquiry oral hearings delivery, including audio-visual production, social media and news updates, and broader presentational issues associated with the delivery of hearings.
- Work closely with the Investigation and Witness Support Teams to ensure that witnesses have the best possible experience when attending hearings, which is trauma informed, and adaptable to their specific requirements.
- Distil key messages using excellent writing skills to produce content that engages and informs, and manage the website, ensuring content development that adheres to brand guidance and style.
- Manage competing demands to meet tight deadlines in a high pressure environment and work strategically to identify opportunities and ways to improve communication efforts and ensure their implementation in a timely manner.
- Develop and implement escalation protocols for managing communication crises should they arise.
- Work successfully with journalists and media outlets to develop and maintain relationships with a variety of stakeholders.
Success profiles are specific to each job and they include the mix of behaviours, experience and technical criteria (if applicable) that candidates will be assessed on.
- Changing and improving - Level 4
- Making effective decisions - Level 4
- Communicating and influencing - Level 4
- Working together - Level 4
- Demonstratable working experience of the Inquiries Act 2005 and the Inquiries (Scotland) Rules 2007.
- Experience of working with vulnerable individuals and an understanding of using trauma informed approaches.
Skilled Worker Sponsorship not being offered
Skilled Worker sponsorship is not available for this role. As a result, we are unable to appoint candidates who require Skilled Worker sponsorship now or in the future. Applicants must have an existing and ongoing right to work in the UK.
Recruitment Principles
As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases.
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.
This post is a full-time role (35 hours) with the expectation that at least 40% of the working week will be spent in the Inquiry offices in central Edinburgh. Due to the nature of delivery within a public Inquiry there will be times when individuals are required to attend the office on a more regular basis.
We encourage applications from individuals on a variety of working patterns and offer a range of flexible working options depending on the needs of the role.
Minimum Time in Post
There is an expectation that the successful applicant will stay in post for the duration of the Inquiry. Whilst there is no set timescale for the Inquiry, applicants should be aware that Inquiries can last typically 5+ years.
Fixed Term Appointment Length
This is a Fixed Term Appointment Fair and Open post which last for 47 months.
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