Team Leader (Legislation) – Community Right to Buy

This is an Expression of Interest (EOI) opportunity, available on a lateral move basis only. Applications are open to Core Scottish Government employees only.

Job Title – C1 Team Leader (Legislation) – Community Right to Buy

Business Area/Directorate – Land Reform, Rural and Islands Policy Division within Directorate for Local Government and Communities

Working Arrangement – Staff in roles compatible with hybrid working should spend 40% of their contracted working time working in person at their contractual workplace. More information can be found within Hybrid Working Policy .

The Directorate for Local Government and Communities currently has staff based in Victoria Quay (Edinburgh), Saughton House (Edinburgh) and Atlantic Quay (Glasgow), with most of the Land Reform Unit based in Edinburgh.

Regular in-person presence in Edinburgh will be required to support Ministers in taking a Bill through Parliament. The successful candidate should be prepared to be contractually based at either Saughton House or Victoria Quay, and will be expected to work from both of those offices regularly. Occasional travel to Atlantic Quay, Glasgow may be required.

Grade - C1

Advert type - Level Transfer

Duration - Permanent- for use with level transfers only

Eligibility - Expressions of interest are invited from substantive colleagues on level transfer from core SG only.

Skilled Worker Sponsorship not being offered

Skilled Worker sponsorship is not available for this role. As a result, we are unable to appoint candidates who require Skilled Worker sponsorship now or in the future. Applicants must have an existing and ongoing right to work in the UK.

Overview

Community land ownership has been a priority of successive Governments since devolution. Measures to support community ownership of land have been prominent in the 2003, 2016 and 2025 Land Reform (Scotland) Acts and the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. Community land policies directly support Scottish Government’s objectives for community empowerment, community wealth building and place-based policy.

The current Community Land Team is responsible for a number of policies designed to empower communities at a local level. These include:

• Community Right to Buy (CRTB) – a group of four policies through which eligible community bodies can apply to Ministers to register an interest giving them first refusal on land that comes up for sale and, in some cases, buying land where the landowner does not wish to sell it. The team is responsible both for CRTB policy and for a significant volume of casework relating to Ministers’ statutory role in this process.

• The Scottish Land Fund (SLF) a multi-million fund celebrating its 25^th anniversary in 2026. Scottish Ministers have overall responsibility for the policy, including appointing the independent committee who take funding decisions. The fund is administered by National Lottery Community Fund and Highlands and Islands Enterprise; the team manages the relationship with those bodies.

• Community Asset Transfer (CAT), a scheme through which eligible communities can request that public bodies (including local authorities) transfer assets to direct community control. Scottish Ministers are responsible for CAT policy and deciding on appeals against decisions made by other public bodies.

Scottish Government recently reviewed CRTB policy and a number of improvements require primary legislation. The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs has agreed to take these forward in a standalone Bill. This Bill is subject to final agreement at Cabinet level and has not yet been communicated publicly; colleagues should therefore not disclose the possibility of this Bill to anybody outwith Scottish Government.

This postholder will therefore work closely alongside the current Community Land Team to lead the Bill through the Parliamentary process. Close and collaborative working with the team and the current Community Land Team Leader will be essential.

The current Community Land Team Leader will depart their role over the course of 2027. At this point C-band responsibilities across all Community Land matters will be reviewed and it is likely the new postholder will take responsibility for some current Community Land matters in addition to the Bill, subject to further discussion with the Unit Head and DD. Although the Bill work is time limited, this role is therefore permanent given the opportunity to take on further work in the medium to long term.

The Community Land Team sits within the wider Land Reform Unit, a grouping of around 15 friendly, welcoming and hard-working colleagues. Other teams in the unit are responsible for implementation of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2025, sponsorship of the Scottish Land Commission, policies to increase transparency about land ownership and control, and other statutory duties Scottish Ministers have under the 2016 Land Reform Act.

The unit takes a flexible approach to managing work pressures and cross-unit work is common. In addition to leading on specific deliverables, all unit members are expected to support their colleagues through busy periods, periods of leave and on cross-team deliverables such as briefing requests and stakeholder engagement. In turn, the post holder can expect to be supported by the wider unit throughout their own busy periods and in particular during key parliamentary stages of the Bill.

The unit sits within the Land Reform, Rural and Islands Policy Division and the newly formed Directorate for Local Government and Communities. Both the Division, Directorate and Directorate General for Communities and External Affairs place strong emphasis on supporting a positive people culture, high performance, learning and development.

This is an opportunity to lead the delivery of a Bill that will support communities across Scotland. You will have the chance to work with a group of supportive and friendly policy and casework experts, as well as legal and parliamentary colleagues across Scottish Government. Bill work requires very close working with Ministers and SpAds, as well as engagement with stakeholders such as the Scottish Land Commission, Scottish Land and Estates, Community Land Scotland, and MSPs from across the political spectrum.

We are seeking an individual who embraces close work with stakeholders, Ministers and colleagues, who has a flexible, supportive and pragmatic working style, and who can use their policy and legislative experience to deliver positive change.

Key Responsibilities:

• Policy development and legislation
  • Working with the current Community Land Team, resolve outstanding policy issues ahead of the Bill being introduced.
  • Overall responsibility for delivery of a Bill through parliament, involving close work with PLU, PCO, SGLD and others.
  • Ownership of the Bill and its supplementary products including the policy memorandum, the financial memorandum, the delegated powers memorandum and impact assessments.
• Ministerial support
  • Support the Cabinet Secretary to take a Bill through Parliament, through regular in person briefing and the production of products to support her through the various Parliamentary stage of the Bill. This will include speeches and briefing packs for use in the Chamber.
  • Ensure successful completion of PQs, engagement briefings, submissions and FOI responses as required.
• Stakeholder engagement
  • Close engagement with stakeholders throughout the Bill’s process, including to be able to effectively manage and advise on likely amendments to the Bill as it passes through Parliament
  • Consideration of comms and media engagement to support the Bill
• Management
  • Though the postholder will not initially have any line management responsibilities, they will in time manage at least 1 x B3 Bill manager.
  • It is likely the role will also adapt to take on management responsibilities for other parts of the Community Land Team, in consultation with the team and relevant colleagues.
  • Ensure proportionate project management is in place, including tracking milestones, managing risk and managing parliamentary timeframes.
• Policy and casework
  • The role will adapt over time and there will be opportunities to lead on, manage or be involved in other community land matters such as CRTB casework, CAT policy, Bill implementation and the Scottish Land Fund.

Success Profile

Success profiles are specific to each job and they include the mix of behaviours, experience and technical criteria (if applicable) that candidates will be assessed on.

Experience

• Legislative Experience. This would ideally have been gained through working in a Bill team or related area (such as PLU, PO or the Scottish Parliament) but substantial experience of secondary legislation may be an appropriate substitute. The postholder will be required to take real ownership of the Bill project and its timelines and risks.
• Policy advice and policy delivery, including advising Ministers on politically or otherwise sensitive issues and managing a large policy project.
• Stakeholder engagement (both internal and external), including building effective working relationships and collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to achieve shared objectives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to present information clearly and concisely to different audiences under pressure.
• Line management experience.

Behaviours Being Tested

• Delivering at Pace - Level 4
• Working Together - Level 4
• Leadership - Level 4

• Making effective decisions – Level 4

You can find out more about Success Profiles Behaviours here: Behaviour levels - Success profiles: candidate guide

Working Pattern

This post is advertised as a full-time role, but we welcome applications from staff with different working patterns; proposed working patterns will be assessed against the business requirements for this post. Bill work may require some evening and weekend work ahead of key parliamentary stages; this will be minimised where at all possible. Postholders should be prepared to be contractually based at Saughton House or Victoria Quay.

Our standard hours are 35 hours per week and we offer a range of flexible working options depending on the needs of the role, including Flexi-leave. Scottish Government staff in hybrid-compatible roles should work in-person atleast 40% of the time, either in an office or other agreed work location. If you have specific questions about the role you are applying for, please contact us.

How to Apply

Please submit a CV and an Expression of Interest (maximum 500 words) outlining your suitability for the role, relevant skills and experience, and what you would bring to the team. Please align this to how you meet the behaviours, experience and technical skills listed in the Success Profile above.

Outside of this word count please confirm that that you have discussed the opportunity with your line manager, and they will authorise your release if your application is successful.

Vacancies close at 11:59pm on the date displayed in the table, unless otherwise stated on the job advert.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be used to support your application, but all statements and examples provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, and presented as your own) applications will be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.

Please see our candidate guidance for more information on acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI in recruitment.

If invited for further assessment, this will consist of a light touch interview.

Discussions are scheduled for w/c 30th November, however this may be subject to change.

For any questions relating to your expression of interest please contact Patrick.kirkham@gov.scot

Recruitment Principles

As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases.

About us

The Scottish Government is the devolved government for Scotland. We have responsibility for a wide range of key policy areas including: education, health, the economy, justice, housing and transport. We offer rewarding careers and employ people across Scotland in a wide range of professions and roles.

Our staff are part of the UK Civil Service observing the Civil Service Codeand working for Ministers and senior stakeholders to deliver vital public services which improve the lives of the people of Scotland.

We offer a supportive and inclusive working environment along with a wide range of employee benefits. Find out more about what we offer.

As part of the UK Civil Service, we uphold the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

Security checks

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).

You can find out more about BPSS on the UK Government website, or read about the different levels of security checks in our Candidate Guide.

Equality statement

We are committed to equality and inclusion and we aim to recruit a diverse workforce that reflects the population of our nation.

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

Further information

Find out more about our organisation, what we offer staff members and how to apply on our Careers Website.

Read our Candidate Guide for further information on our recruitment and application processes.