Communications Officer for Christina McKelvie MSP

Christina McKelvie MSP is recruiting a part-time Communications Officer, based in her busy constituency office in Hamilton. This is an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic, hard-working individual who would like to be part of the small dedicated team supporting Christina’s work for the constituents of Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.

Working for: Christina McKelvie, MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse

Job Title: Communications Officer

Location:Based occasionally in the local Hamilton constituency but can also be from home or Edinburgh

Duration: Part-time (14 hours per week required)

Salary:  £12,500. You will also benefit from generous holiday entitlement and an employer’s pension contribution.

Supported by local constituency office staff

Details:

Christina McKelvie MSP is seeking to recruit a part-time Communications Officer based in her constituency office in Hamilton. This is an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and highly capable individual to join Christina’s constituency team to support her work as the Member of the Scottish Parliament for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.

The successful candidate will produce materials on behalf of Christina, keep up to date with developments in the media and identify potential opportunities and events. The will also be expected to correspond with constituents and liaise with the media.

This is a perfect opportunity for someone with an exceptional level of oral and written communication skills, and a positive attitude to work. Experience of website and graphic design is preferred but not essential.

Applicants should have a strong awareness and knowledge of local and national politics, and an awareness of the constituency of Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.

Responsibilities

1. Producing materials that effectively convey Christina’s aims to the general public and media.

2. Keeping up to date with current media developments.

3. Corresponding with constituents and local campaign groups on local issues.

4. Producing high quality press briefings, social media clips and written materials.

5. Following all media outlets to capture relevant developments as they happen.

6. Identifying potential media opportunities and acting as media contact.

7. Identifying forthcoming events, in turn promoting Christina’s work.

8. Developing creative new engagement methods for social media accounts.

9. Representing Christina in dealing with media and providing statements where appropriate.

10. Keeping your knowledge of policy areas and local issues up to date.

11. Analysing, evaluating and interpreting data and statistics from social media/websites’, i.e. what engages and what doesn’t work.

Requirements

1. Have an interest in politics with the confidence to represent someone in a media-related capacity.

2. Be capable of monitoring media developments and sourcing information from a range of channels.

3. Ability to foster good working relationships with confidence to understand how the media world operates.

4. Be able to communicate over a range of formats on different media platforms.

5. Have flexibility using relevant IT skills and writing styles, covering both traditional and newer forms of media.

6. Be a quick learner with the ability to multitask and work within tight timescales.

Desirable

1. Have analytical skills with the ability to identify and investigate trends while interpreting data.

2. Website/Graphic design experience.

3. Understanding of the local constituency and local organisations.

How to apply: Applicants should submit their CV together with a covering letter demonstrating how their skills and experience correspond to the job description tochristina.mckelvie.msp@parliament.scot. Interviews will be held shortly thereafter. Please note late applications and those received without both a CV and a suitable covering letter will not be considered.

Closing date: Friday 22^nd September