Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs
Family Support Development Officer
Family Support Development Officer at Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs, based in East Dunbartonshire. This is a contract role.
- Pay
- Not given by the employer
- Hours and contract
- Contract · On site · Weekend work
- Location
- East Dunbartonshire
- Closing date
- Sector
- Social Care & Childcare
Reference ecba4daa-f774-4c5b-8b3c-be3b87a028c0
About the role
Post: Family Support Development Officer
Accountable to: Senior Family Support Development Officer
Location: East Dunbartonshire
Contract: 35 Hours/week (FTE)
Objective: This post will develop, deliver, support and promote family support and engagement for family members who are affected by someone else’s substance use. The post is responsible for delivering Scottish Families’ East Dunbartonshire Family Support Service, and working in partnership with partner organisations, families and communities.
Salary: £35,264.23 plus 4% pension contribution
Conditions:
The post is located in East Dunbartonshire and has an East Dunbartonshire wide remit involving significant travel throughout the council area and to our Head Office in Glasgow. It is expected that the post holder will be required to work some evenings and occasional weekends. This post will be part of Scottish Families’ staff team and will be supervised by the Senior Family Support Development Officer with a close working relationship with East Dunbartonshire Health & Social Care Partnership, East Dunbartonshire Alcohol and Drug Partnership, and a range of statutory, third sector and community partners including, Alcohol and Drug Recovery Services, Mental Health, and Advocacy. This service is our longest running Family Support Service, established in 2013 and is funded by East Dunbartonshire HSCP. It is a single post service, giving the Family Support Development Officer the autonomy to shape service delivery in response local need.
Role:
To be responsible for developing, maintaining, and delivering a range of support in East Dunbartonshire to families affected by someone else’s substance use, ensuring an effective response to the need, within the limits of the service resources. Direct support from Scottish Families will focus on supporting adult family members aged 16+ years. The role includes utilising and promoting evidence-based interventions and evaluating and demonstrating the impact of these and the East Dunbartonshire Family Support Service.
The service helps deliver the family commitments in Preventing Harm, Promoting Recovery: Scotland's Alcohol & Drugs Strategic Plan 2026-2035, which includes specific commitments that families receive support in their own right and are involved in their loved one’s treatment and care.
Responsibilities:
• To develop, maintain and deliver a range of family support and engagement for family members across East Dunbartonshire who are affected by someone else’s substance use.
• To ensure the Family Support Service offers, choice, consistency and flexibility for adult family members (aged 16+ years) in their own right.
To act as the point of contact for referrals (including self-referrals from family members), queries, advice and expertise for families themselves, other family support services, treatment and care services, the recovery community and partner agencies.
• To deliver initial assessments, one to one support, and group support, and refer on for other support as required. This includes face to face, telephone and online support.
• To work alongside family members to build their skills, capacity, confidence, well-being and connections.
• To offer advocacy and self-advocacy support, to ensure families can access their rights as outlined in the Carers (Scotland) Act and Preventing Harm, Promoting Recovery strategy.
To reach across wider family and community networks to identify and support opportunities to grow and develop family support and engagement across East Dunbartonshire’s communities, within the limits of the service resources.
• To use and promote evidence-based interventions, and to evaluate and demonstrate the impact of these collaborative family support and engagement models.
• To ensure integration with the wider peer support and recovery community and East Dunbartonshire’s Recovery Oriented System of Care (ROSC).
• To comply with Scottish Families procedures for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children and vulnerable adults.
• To encourage local involvement at a regional and national level.
• To identify local examples of best practice in family support and engagement to impact national service delivery.
• To actively promote family recovery and family inclusive practice.
• To maintain and enhance existing peer networks and build new relationships, within the limits of the service resources.
• To participate in local forums to ensure the views of families are represented, within the limits of the service resources.
• To act as liaison with stakeholders and decision makers at a local and regional level with support of the Senior Family Support Development Officer and Scottish Families Senior Management Team.
• To represent Scottish Families at external events where appropriate.
• To identify and utilise opportunities to enhance Scottish Families profile and the family support agenda.
• To develop and maintain appropriate monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for the post.
• To contribute to fundraising and funding reporting as required.
• Operate within an Equal Opportunities Framework and promote equality issues in all aspects of work.
Any additional duties will normally be to cover unforeseen circumstances or changes in work and will usually be compatible with the regular type of work. If an additional task or responsibility becomes a regular or frequent part of the job, it will be included in the job description in consultation with the post holder.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
POST: FAMILY SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
| AREA | ESSENTIAL | DESIRABLE |
| Qualifications | Degree in a relevant subject or equivalentprofessional qualification | Counselling qualificationCRAFT (CommunityReinforcement & FamilyTraining) or equivalent |
| Experience | Working at a distance from main officeDirect client workGroup workFacilitating or enabling the work of othersDirect work with familiesIdentifying and managing riskWorking in partnership | Working with or as avolunteerUsing and delivering web-based support services |
| Knowledge | Issues for families affected by substanceuseValues underpinning advocacyUnderstanding of voluntary sector | Awareness of substance usetrends and issues |
| Skills | Ability to encourage and promote thedevelopment of family support groupsAbility to effectively and sensitivelyadvocate for othersStrong organisational skills.Effective interpersonal and communicationskillsCompetent report writing skillsAbility to evaluate performance againstagreed standardsTeam workingIT literate | ● Presentation skills.Using social media to promotethe serviceDelivering training |
| Other | Flexibility in a developing role/taskEmpathetic approachCommitment to cooperative team workingand equal opportunitiesAvailable to work flexible hours, includingevenings and weekendWilling to undertake training and on-goinglearning | Experience of promotingservice development to thepublic and media. |
Reference: ecba4daa-f774-4c5b-8b3c-be3b87a028c0 · Posted 1 day ago · Closes 1 Nov 2026 · Listed via Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs
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