Member to the Board

ABOUT CHILDREN’S HEARINGS SCOTLAND (CHS)

Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS) plays a central role within Scotland’s unique children’s hearings system, working alongside partners to ensure the safety, wellbeing and rights of infants, children and young people. Every year, thousands of children, young people and families engage with the system, making it one of Scotland’s most important child-centred decision-making forums.

CHS is a public body responsible for recruiting, training and supporting volunteer Panel Members who sit on children’s hearings. Panel Members listen to children and families and make legal decisions with and for children who need care, protection or support. Through a robust recruitment process and ongoing learning and support, CHS helps ensure Panel Members have the skills, knowledge and confidence to make high-quality decisions that are fair, consistent and centred on the rights and needs of each child.

Established under the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, CHS works to a set of National Standards and is committed to upholding its vision, purpose and values in everything it does. Through the dedication of its volunteers and its work with partners across the system, CHS helps ensure children and young people are heard and supported to achieve better outcomes.

The organisation is led by the National Convener, who is also the Chief Executive. We have around 2,000 volunteer Panel Members from communities across Scotland, supported by a team of over 100 dedicated colleagues operating on a national level.

CHS is operating within an ever changing, complex environment shaped by the implementation of significant legislative and non-legislative changes that will help deliver The Promise by 2030. Together these changes will strengthen children’s rights and improve experiences and outcomes for children and young people. In the next three years the children’s hearings system will see its most significant transformation in over 50 years.

Our vision is for all infants, children, young people and their families to be safe, loved, and supported to realise their full potential. Our purpose is to ensure our hearings make child-centred decisions which respect and protect children’s rights and support them to thrive. Our values are: challenging, child centred, creative, respectful, open and fair.

THE BOARD OF CHS

As a Board Member, you will help provide strategic leadership and oversight to CHS as we work with partners across the children’s hearings system to deliver positive outcomes for children and young people. You will contribute to decisions on our strategic direction, scrutinise organisational performance and support effective governance of the organisation.

This is an exciting time to join CHS. As a Board Member, you will play an important role in helping CHS respond to significant change while remaining focused on the rights, wellbeing and experiences of children and young people.

The CHS Board works with the National Convener and the senior team to ensure that the organisation contributes effectively to the modernisation of the hearings system. It supports the National Convener in his statutory responsibilities, providing strategic direction, advice, guidance, support and challenge. The Board has a corporate responsibility for ensuring that the organisation delivers on the aims and objectives set by Scottish Ministers and for promoting the efficient and effective use of staff and other resources in line with the principles of best value. Board members’ responsibilities include:

• Understanding the CHS role within the children’s hearings system and wider public services;

• Overseeing the preparation and approval of annual corporate, financial and operational plans to deliver the objectives and outcomes set out in the CHS framework documents;

• Agreeing challenging targets for the organisation and monitoring its performance;

• Supporting the National Convener and senior team to deliver the organisation’s objectives;

• Ensuring that CHS is following best practice in its governance functions;

• Delivering on the vision to put children and young people at the centre of the organisation’s work;

• Acting as an ambassador for CHS to build positive relationships with the children’s panel community and other partners to achieve better outcomes for children, young people and their families;

• Working productively with key partners (these include the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration, local authorities, COSLA, Social Work Scotland and the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland);

• Following the Board Members’ Code of Conduct at all times, particularly when performing the functions of the Board and on any of its committees, sub-committees and groups;

• Attending Board meetings on a regular basis and being well prepared by reading relevant papers in advance and, if necessary, seeking further information to ensure understanding;

• Upholding the principles of public life as set out by the Ethical Standards Commissioner at all times.

FURTHER INFORMATION

For more information, we would encourage you to attend an online information session hosted by the Chair of Children’s Hearings Scotland at 5.30pm on Tuesday 6 October 2026, where we will be discussing the role and the appointment process and you will have the opportunity to meet members of the CHS Board and ask questions. To register, please contact Frieda.cadogan@chs.gov.scot at CHS for further details and a link to the event.

You can also contact Katharina Kasper, Chair of Children’s Hearings Scotland, at katharina.kasperboard@chscotland.scot for an informal conversation about the role. Further information about CHS can be found at www.chscotland.gov.uk.

Please watch short video from Katherina Kasper, Chair to Children's' Hearing Scotland.

Responsibilities

REMUNERATION AND TIME COMMITMENT

Remuneration is £208.99 per day, up to a maximum total fee of £5,015.76 per financial year, for a time commitment of up to two days per month. Reasonable expenses incurred will be reimbursed. The appointment is non-pensionable.

Board meetings normally take place at Thistle House, Edinburgh. The Board currently meets five times a year and its meetings are normally held in public.

Qualifications

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

We are keen to hear from people with a range of skills, experiences and perspectives. Previous Board experience is not essential. We welcome applications from individuals who can demonstrate sound judgement, strategic thinking and a commitment to public service.

Priority Criterion

The priority criterion is weighted over the essential criteria. Candidates who provide the strongest evidence against the priority criterion will be considered most able to fulfil the role.

1. Care sector experience: experience of working within or alongside the wider care system for children and young people; understanding of how care services work together and the challenges experienced by children, families, carers and frontline services; and the ability to use this experience to inform Board discussion and support better outcomes for children and young people.

Essential Criteria

Candidates must be able to demonstrate that they meet all of the essential criteria. The following two essential criteria are assessed at application and at interview:

1. Constructive and supportive challenge.

2. Communication and influencing.

The following essential criterion is assessed at interview only:

• Analysis and decision making (one week before the interview you will be sent a paper to read and will be asked for your main observations on it at interview).

The values that underpin everything CHS does, which are challenging, child centred, creative, respectful, open and fair, are also an essential criterion. There is no separate application question on the values: you will be expected to show throughout the selection process, in the evidence you give at application and at interview, how your behaviours align to them.

A panel of two young people involved in the children’s hearings system will also assess communication and influencing, and the CHS values, through a separate interview held on the interview day.

Desirable Criterion

Lived experience of the children’s hearings system. This will be assessed at the interview stage only.

Full details, including example indicators for each criterion, are set out in the Person Specification in the Applicant Information Pack.

APPLICATION INFORMATION

You will be asked to provide evidence in the online application against the priority criterion (Criterion 1) and the two essential criteria assessed at application stage (Criteria 2 and 3). Each response must not exceed 300 words. You will also be asked to provide a tailored career history.

To apply for this role, follow these instructions:

1. Download and save the Applicant Information Pack 

2. Read the ‘person specification’ and ‘how to apply’ sections in the pack, and prepare your evidence against Criteria 1, 2 and 3, noting the 300 word limit for each response.

3. Save a copy of your tailored career history to your device as one PDF. 

4. Navigate back to this job advert and click ‘apply’.

5. Complete the personal information and conflict of interest questions.

6. Attach your PDF (the system may ask for a “Resume” but this is where to upload it).

7. When prompted, provide your evidence in the box for Criterion 1 (care sector experience) and in the boxes for Criterion 2 (constructive and supportive challenge) and Criterion 3 (communication and influencing). Each response must not exceed 300 words.

8. Submit your application by 17:00 on Thursday 22 October 2026.

9. PLEASE NOTE you do not have the option to edit your application once you click ‘submit’. You must have all your information and attachments to hand before submitting your application.

Late applications, and any content exceeding the stated word limits, will not be considered by the panel.

 

EQUALITY STATEMENT

Scottish Ministers value highly the benefits of diverse Public Body Boards. People from all walks of life are encouraged to apply for public appointments.

Find out more about our commitment to diversity and how we offer and support recruitment adjustments for anyone who needs them.

This appointment round will provide guaranteed interviews for disabled people who meet the criteria for the role being tested at the application stage.

Successful candidates must complete the Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) before they can be appointed. BPSS is comprised of four main pre-employment checks: Identity, Right to work, Employment History and a Criminal Record check (unspent convictions).

Appointees will be asked to complete pre-appointment checks which will include a Disclosure Check (there is no charge for this) and membership of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme, which is a requirement for this role. Appointment is conditional on satisfactory completion of these and the appointee cannot start in the role until PVG membership is received.