Home Based in Scotland    

Closing date: Friday 16 February

Salary negotiable depending on experience and agreed working hours

Overview

Health communications consultancy Ettrickburn Limited is expanding its operations with the launch of a health and care news and information service for Scotland.

We are now looking for a reporter/researcher to help make this important venture a success, while also supporting information gathering for the consultancy.

Launching in the spring, our website and news app will be important channels for those working in health and care, for policy and decision-makers, patients and taxpayers, to see both the local and national picture through reading our news stories, features, interviews and briefings.

The job

You will be working as part of a small team led by an experienced journalist who will be the editor of the news service.

The reporter part of the role, which will represent roughly 2/3 of your duties (if you are working full time), will involve researching and publishing a selection of news stories and features every day, Monday to Friday, and maintaining a news planning dairy.

The researcher part of the role, which will represent roughly one third of the role (if full time), will involve activities that include compiling weekly policy updates, and maintaining a detailed database and library of publications by health and social care bodies.

Hours, terms and conditions

Our main interest is in getting the right person or people to fulfil this combined role: we are more interested in getting the right person or people to work with us. We are flexible in our approach and will be happy to offer this as a full or part-time post, as a job share, and/or throughout the year or just during the Scottish Parliament terms to candidate(s) who can provide the right mix of skills.

You will be home based with some travel within Scotland, including one face to face team meeting per month. This is a permanent position on satisfactory completion of a six month probationary period.

The person

Personal Attributes:

• a calm, honest and un-biased communicator
• excellent interpersonal skills and manner

Essential Skills and Attributes:

• demonstrable skills and experience as a writer/reporter
• ability to manage your workload, operating autonomously but knowing when to seek support and a second opinion
• understanding of NHSScotland, the Scottish Government and Parliament, Scottish local government and social care policy
• attention to detail and accurate written English
• written and verbal presentation skills, including the ability to identify key facts for inclusion in summary documents
• proficiency in Microsoft office programmes

Preferred

• detailed knowledge of health and care policy in Scotland
• understanding of Scots law, legislation on privacy, data protection and defamation

Desirable

• website publishing and content management experience

We will provide

• IT equipment (unless you prefer to use your own)
• Mileage and agreed expenses
• A monthly contribution towards the cost of your broadband and mobile phone
• Career support, supervision and feedback
• Training as required, which is likely to be in a ratio of 70% in-house mentoring; 20% experiential (for instance working alongside people with particular skills) and 10% formal training courses.

How to apply

Please send an email by the end of Friday 16 February with

i) your CV,

ii) two examples of your work, and

iii) a covering letter

to jane@ettrickburn.com.

Your letter should be no longer than one page of A4 explaining why this job is for you.

In your email, tell us whether you want to work full-time or, if not, what working pattern you would like to adopt. Also tell us how much you think we should be paying you based on your skills and experience.

We will contact all applicants within one week of the closing date.