Scottish Government Secondment Opportunity

Alcohol and Drugs National Support Coordinators

Notes of interest are invited from individuals with a proven track record of change management and with a good understanding of the local delivery landscape to fill a number of secondment positions within the Scottish Government.

The successful candidates will be seconded jointly to the Scottish Government’s Drugs Policy Unit and Alcohol Policy Team. The secondees will work together as part of a team and will be responsible for working closely with local partners in the alcohol and drugs field across Scotland to implement and support changes in strategy and working practice in line with the Scottish Government’s new drugs strategy and framework on alcohol misuse. A significant aspect of the coordinators’ role will be to support local partners in understanding and implementing the changes implied by the delivery reform package overall, especially in implementing the guidance soon to be published by the Scottish Government, CoSLA and NHS Scotland. It is anticipated that the roles will evolve and respond to changing needs, however, the main duties are listed below.

These secondments offer an excellent opportunity to work with Ministers, Government officials and local partners in delivering two of the Government’s key policies.

The secondments will be for an initial period of 24 months (with the possibility of extension for one year) and will be primarily based at St Andrew’s House, Edinburgh, on a full time contract (although flexible working patterns and locations will be negotiable). Due to the nature of the role, extensive travel across the country will be required.

Drugs Strategy and Alcohol Framework

The new national Drugs strategy 'The Road to Recovery', published last May and approved unanimously by Parliament, signals a new era in Scotland’s approach to tackling drugs. It is wide-ranging, looking at ways forward on treatment, prevention, enforcement and criminal justice interventions. Central to the strategy is the concept of recovery which should be the aim of all drug treatment and rehabilitation services. The Scottish Government want to turn recovery into a reality and the reform of delivery arrangements will play a key role in this.

On 2 March Ministers published Changing Scotland's Relationship with Alcohol: A Framework for Action. Alcohol misuse is widely recognised by health experts as one of Scotland's most pressing public health concerns and the Framework addresses issues around reducing alcohol consumption, tackling the damaging impact alcohol misuse has on our families and communities, encouraging positive attitudes and positive choices, and improving the support and treatment available to tackle alcohol misuse. The Framework for Action recognises that alcohol misuse is much more prevalent across Scottish society than previously recognised. As a result the Framework adopts a whole population approach, as well as recognising that some vulnerable groups require a more targeted approach.

Main duties

The support coordinators will:

  • Help to improve partnership working in the alcohol and drugs field, including clarifying and improving structures and lines of accountability;
  • Provide support in the shift to using outcomes in planning, commissioning and monitoring services; this will include helping partners to use the Outcomes Toolkit which was developed by the SACDM/SMACAP Delivery Reform Group;
  • Support local partners in implementing the new drugs strategy and alcohol framework, including working with the Scottish Drugs Recovery Consortium to implement recovery and with local partners to take forward the whole population approach on alcohol;
  • Facilitate discussions at the local level, including between partners, using wider networks and links to other Government Directorates where appropriate;
  • Be a means of capturing and disseminating best practice, facilitating practical benchmarking on specific issues, such as needs assessments, data quality assurance or implementing National Quality Standards;
  • Improve the quality of information and data flowing between the local level and Government to improve policy making and help deliver an effective outcomes approach;
  • Liaise and work effectively with other national bodies with responsibilities for the implementation of the new alcohol and drugs strategies, and with the teams working to implement the alcohol and drugs HEAT targets; and
  • Develop a business plan with other members of the national support team with clear objectives that address local partners’ needs, ensure genuine added value and take account of the capacity of other bodies to assist.

Knowledge and experience required

Essential

  • A proven track record of change management and experience in working with outcomes and partnerships;
  • An excellent understanding of the local delivery landscape, including community planning structures.

Desirable

  • A specialist knowledge of the delivery of alcohol and drugs services.

Key skills required

Management and leadership

The post holders will:

  • be a confident self-starter who thrives on the challenge of leading change and helping to develop the support function from its inception;
  • have a proven record of delivery and be able to work with colleagues to develop a work plan, manage projects and prioritise;
  • be able to operate with an awareness of stakeholder and partner organisations to enhance service delivery and organisational credibility;
  • be able to work at the interface between delivery and policy, with an ability to add value by: translating strategic policy frameworks and intentions into an operational environment; and informing policy-makers of delivery issues to be factored into strategic thinking.

Delivery

The post holders will:

  • display excellent communication skills both verbally and written. The post holder will be required to work with a range of colleagues across the Government, as well as senior stakeholders in local authorities, health boards and others; and
  • be able to establish credibility and buy-in from senior stakeholders for the new support function, negotiate at a high level, and build and manage effective relationships; and
  • be expected to be able to understand alcohol and drugs policy both nationally and locally, and be able to provide robust evidence based advice that assists in their implementation.

Remuneration and conditions of secondment

The secondees will continue to be paid their current salary by their existing employer, who will be reimbursed for the secondee’s staff costs. We are expecting each secondee’s salary to be in a range equivalent to that of a Scottish Government C1 grade, that is, £36,203 to 49,559. The successful candidates will remain an employee of their organisation during the period of secondment.

Travel and subsistence costs will be covered but there is no travel to work supplement.

Further information and notes of interest

For further information or an informal chat about the secondment opportunity, please contact Joe Griffin on 0131 244 2500 or Alison Douglas on 01312443513.

The donor employer must consent to the note of interest being put forward for this secondment opportunity.

Anyone interested in this secondment opportunity should send a note of interest together with their CV to Joe Griffin at and Alison Douglas at by Friday 27 March 2009.

Joe Griffin & Alison Douglas

Drugs Policy Unit / Alcohol Misuse Team

St Andrews House

Regent Road

Edinburgh

EH1 3DG