About Our Scottish Future

Our Scottish Future was established by former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown following the general election of 2019 to put the positive, progressive and patriotic case for Scotland’s place in the UK.  Our purpose is to campaign for a better Scotland inside a changed UK based on the values of co-operation, solidarity, empathy, and sharing.

We aim to talk specifically to ‘middle Scotland’ – the 40% or so of Scots who are not strongly in favour of Independence but at the same time in identify as primarily Scottish and hold political views that are in general progressive.  Our work comprises a combination of policy/research, polling, and community engagement.  We also have a secondary platform in ScotlandCan that publishes a range of ideas from multiple sources for how the devolved powers that Scotland has can be used better.

We are looking to hire a policy researcher who can work on a range of short- and medium-duration projects in our focus areas of the Scottish Economy, Climate Change, Poverty, Education, and Healthcare – highlighting in particular the value that enhanced co-operation between the Scottish and UK governments could bring to the Scottish people.
This is an opportunity that would suit somebody who is interested in getting a wide volume of publications under their belt on a broad range of policy topics, and supports the political goals of Our Scottish Future.

Responsibilities

• Creating analytical frameworks to investigate the performance of Scotland’s economy and public services
• Interviewing stakeholders and experts
• Conducting original desk-based research and analysis
• Writing regular reports of between 1,000 and 5,000 words
• Attending events on behalf of Our Scottish Future and writing up briefing notes
• Providing support in communicating our research
• Writing rapid responses to current events

The Kind of Person We’re Looking For

• Curious about politics and wider Scottish society
• Passionate about new ideas, and for making change happen in Scotland
• Numerate in particular around piecing together data sets from different sources, and diligent in making sure analyses are correct
• Clear in written and verbal communications – explaining complex ideas simply
• Collaborative – in particular an ability to work with people from different academic and social backgrounds
• Respectful of alternative viewpoints on the constitution and social change

Relevant Experience

• Previous experience in politics and policy research – for think tanks, businesses, political parties, or campaigns – in our focus areas is valuable but not necessary.
• Any previous experience of rapid turnaround research and writing will be highly useful for this role, either as part of an advanced degree or for example in journalism, management/strategy consultancy, financial analysis, or the law.

Pay & Conditions

• Reporting directly into the CEO
• Full time role, willing to discuss part/flexi-time or job-share options for the right candidate(s)
• Based in central Glasgow, with office-working expected for some of the time
• Annual full-time salary of £31,200