Working at the heart of Scotland's unique care, protection and justice system for children, as a Children's Reporter your primary purpose will be to decide whether a child should be referred to a children's Hearing for consideration of compulsory measures of supervision and to conduct court proceedings to establish facts. You will manage the competing demands of a challenging case load. Utilising effective communication skills you will investigate and respond to referrals from partner agencies such as social work and the police or from members of the public. Based on investigations tailored to the needs of a child, you will make informed decisions regarding the need to refer a child to a children's Hearing. You will support fair process within children's Hearings and prepare and conduct court proceedings. With comprehensive training and support you will present evidence in court to establish facts, or to promote a Hearing's decision where that decision is supportable., When completing section D of your application form, please explain how you meet each of the essential and desirable criteria laid out on page 1 of the Person Specification. You may choose to label each of these criteria and prepare a short paragraph for each.
Thereafter, please do the same for each of the 4 Values listed on page 2 of the Person Specification, e.g. briefly describe how you demonstrate the Value of being 'Child Centred'. Please note you are not required to list evidence for each of the essential criteria indicators listed as bullets under the Values (e.g. 'personally resilient and able to accept support to navigate challenging potentially traumatic experiences).
There will be an opportunity to demonstrate and assess some of the other Person Specification criteria at interview.
Please save the application form together with the separate Diversity Monitoring form to your drive/desktop, fill in the relevant sections and then submit both to recruitment@scra.gov.uk. When the email opens, you must attach your completed forms to it. The diversity monitoring form enables us to monitor equalities throughout the recruitment process.
The selection process will include an interview in which the panel and candidate will attend either physically, virtually or a combination of both - ensuring accessibility for all. If you require any adjustments or specific arrangements to support your application or participation in the selection process, we encourage you to contact our HR team at HR.Helpdesk@scra.gov.uk. We are committed to creating a supportive and equitable candidate experience for all.
Qualified to degree level or equivalent in social work, law or another relevant discipline, you will bring at least two years' experience in a similar fast-paced environment. You will bring experience of analysing and assimilating information to make evidence-based decisions, along with the ability to use digital technology to deliver a service. Personal resilience and an ability to work at pace are essential.
You are required to undertake, and successfully complete, a mandatory accredited training programme which will lead to the award of the recognised Professional Development Award for Children's Reporter Practice within two years of appointment to this post. The requirement to successfully complete the Award within these timescales includes if you move into another related role before completion, e.g. if you are recruited into a promoted post of Senior Practitioner or Locality Reporter Manager.