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Enquiries Officer
| Posting date: | 22 August 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £14,307 to £17,305 per year |
| Hours: | Part time |
| Closing date: | 27 August 2025 |
| Location: | Edinburgh |
| Remote working: | Hybrid - work remotely up to 3 days per week |
| Company: | The Scottish Parliament |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | REQ000249 |
Summary
Permanent /Part time Enquiries Officer / Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe)
Part-time – 14 hours and 48 minutes (2 days) per week
Working pattern: This is a part-time post (14 hours and 48 minutes, working 2 consecutive days, either a Monday/Tuesday or a Thursday/Friday). This is a hybrid role, working from Holyrood, and from home. We are happy to discuss flexible working.
Pay scale - £14,307 to £17,305. All new starts will be appointed to the first scale point of the grade for their role. (FTE £35,769 to £43,264)
About the Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body is responsible for providing the Parliament with the property, staff and services required for the Parliament’s purposes. We place a high value on excellence, and we are continually looking to improve how we can deliver the Parliament's core purpose of representing the people of Scotland by debating issues of national importance, passing legislation and holding the Scottish Government to account.
We are a diverse workforce, and our embedded values shape the way we work and treat each other. We have a culture of respect and inclusion, and everyone has the ability to make a difference. For further information about working for the Scottish Parliament, please see our website.
About the role
This is an excellent opportunity to join the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) as an Enquiries Officer. SPICe is responsible for providing in-person services to Members and their staff on business days.
SPICe supports the scrutiny and legislative functions of the Parliament by providing impartial, accurate and timely information and briefings to Members of the Scottish Parliament, their staff and parliamentary staff. It comprises a research and information service. SPICe is part of the Scrutiny Group and is led by three joint office heads.
Reporting to a SPICe Manager, you’ll be part of the Enquiries and Collections Team which is currently made up of twelve members of staff. This team answers the majority of SPICe enquiries from MSPs and their staff. Your work will be driven by the demands of the Parliament, with constantly shifting priorities and deadlines.
You’ll answer enquiries from MSPs on a wide range of subjects, including those of a sensitive and challenging nature. You’ll maintain parliamentary data and information, including contributing to the Scottish Parliament statistics volume and preparing for the Scottish Parliament election. You’ll prepare country briefings and contribute to SPICe blogs.
About you
You’ll bring analytical and reference skills to the role and will communicate with brevity and accuracy, both orally and in writing. The successful candidate will have experience in the use of both print and digital reference resources.
With the ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines, you’ll have excellent organisation and time management skills. You’ll demonstrate a high level of personal credibility and integrity. You’ll have the ability to develop and maintain positive working relationships with colleagues and others, recognising the importance of understanding customer needs.
With experience of a range of IT systems, you’ll be able to adapt quickly to new technology or digital tools. You’ll demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement and will be expected to act impartially and exercise sound judgement in everything you do.
For further information about the role please see the job description. You can also contact the Chair of the recruitment panel, emma.robinson@parliament.scot
How to apply
Stage 1
Please apply before 12:00 noon, Wednesday, 27 August 2025.
To find out how to apply and for further information about our recruitment process, please see our recruitment process pages on the website.
Please note that only your statement will be submitted to Hiring Managers, without any personal details. Hiring managers will then select candidates for further assessment or interview based on their statement which addresses the values within the job description.
Stage 2
If your application is successful, you’ll be invited to attend an assessment and interview. Assessments will be held the week commencing 8 September although this is subject to change. Interviews will be held the week commencing 15 September 2025, although this is subject to change.
Offers will be awarded based on merit. For this role, the following weighting is used to come to a final score on which offers will be based. Application 20%, Assessment 20%, Interview 60%.
All new starts will be appointed to the first scale point of the grade for their role. For information on progression through the scale points, see our Pay and Reward Policy Statement.
Feedback will only be provided on request to those who attend interview.
If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please email: careers@parliament.scot
Part-time – 14 hours and 48 minutes (2 days) per week
Working pattern: This is a part-time post (14 hours and 48 minutes, working 2 consecutive days, either a Monday/Tuesday or a Thursday/Friday). This is a hybrid role, working from Holyrood, and from home. We are happy to discuss flexible working.
Pay scale - £14,307 to £17,305. All new starts will be appointed to the first scale point of the grade for their role. (FTE £35,769 to £43,264)
About the Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body is responsible for providing the Parliament with the property, staff and services required for the Parliament’s purposes. We place a high value on excellence, and we are continually looking to improve how we can deliver the Parliament's core purpose of representing the people of Scotland by debating issues of national importance, passing legislation and holding the Scottish Government to account.
We are a diverse workforce, and our embedded values shape the way we work and treat each other. We have a culture of respect and inclusion, and everyone has the ability to make a difference. For further information about working for the Scottish Parliament, please see our website.
About the role
This is an excellent opportunity to join the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) as an Enquiries Officer. SPICe is responsible for providing in-person services to Members and their staff on business days.
SPICe supports the scrutiny and legislative functions of the Parliament by providing impartial, accurate and timely information and briefings to Members of the Scottish Parliament, their staff and parliamentary staff. It comprises a research and information service. SPICe is part of the Scrutiny Group and is led by three joint office heads.
Reporting to a SPICe Manager, you’ll be part of the Enquiries and Collections Team which is currently made up of twelve members of staff. This team answers the majority of SPICe enquiries from MSPs and their staff. Your work will be driven by the demands of the Parliament, with constantly shifting priorities and deadlines.
You’ll answer enquiries from MSPs on a wide range of subjects, including those of a sensitive and challenging nature. You’ll maintain parliamentary data and information, including contributing to the Scottish Parliament statistics volume and preparing for the Scottish Parliament election. You’ll prepare country briefings and contribute to SPICe blogs.
About you
You’ll bring analytical and reference skills to the role and will communicate with brevity and accuracy, both orally and in writing. The successful candidate will have experience in the use of both print and digital reference resources.
With the ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines, you’ll have excellent organisation and time management skills. You’ll demonstrate a high level of personal credibility and integrity. You’ll have the ability to develop and maintain positive working relationships with colleagues and others, recognising the importance of understanding customer needs.
With experience of a range of IT systems, you’ll be able to adapt quickly to new technology or digital tools. You’ll demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement and will be expected to act impartially and exercise sound judgement in everything you do.
For further information about the role please see the job description. You can also contact the Chair of the recruitment panel, emma.robinson@parliament.scot
How to apply
Stage 1
Please apply before 12:00 noon, Wednesday, 27 August 2025.
To find out how to apply and for further information about our recruitment process, please see our recruitment process pages on the website.
Please note that only your statement will be submitted to Hiring Managers, without any personal details. Hiring managers will then select candidates for further assessment or interview based on their statement which addresses the values within the job description.
Stage 2
If your application is successful, you’ll be invited to attend an assessment and interview. Assessments will be held the week commencing 8 September although this is subject to change. Interviews will be held the week commencing 15 September 2025, although this is subject to change.
Offers will be awarded based on merit. For this role, the following weighting is used to come to a final score on which offers will be based. Application 20%, Assessment 20%, Interview 60%.
All new starts will be appointed to the first scale point of the grade for their role. For information on progression through the scale points, see our Pay and Reward Policy Statement.
Feedback will only be provided on request to those who attend interview.
If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please email: careers@parliament.scot