Land Reform Unit - Policy Official

Land Reform is a highly political area of policy that has been a priority of successive Governments since devolution. Land Reform is about how control, influence and ownership over our limited landmass is distributed across society. Policy areas under the broad umbrella of Land Reform include Community land ownership, the various Community Rights to Buy, the Scottish Land Fund, sponsorship of the Scottish Land Commission, policies relating to transparency of control/ownership of land and production of the government’s Land Rights

The Government recently passed the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2025. This landmark legislation will:

• Require owners of large landholdings to engage with local communities, including through the development of publicly available Land Management Plans which will be hosted by a public sector agency.
• Enable communities to be pre-notified of land sales to they have more opportunity to buy land in a way that benefits the local area – including through utilising their Community Right to Buy. 
• Give Ministers new powers to require that large estates are sold into separate lots – thereby reducing concentration of land ownership in Scotland. 
• Create a new Land and Communities Commissioner (LCC) to be part of the Scottish Land Commission. The LCC will enforce some of the obligations on landowners in the Act and have a role in advising on the lotting of landholdings.
  
   

Though the Act has now passed, significant amounts of secondary legislation and guidance are needed before the policies can come into effect. The holder of this post will play a key role in the implementation of the Act in the coming years. Ministers are keen to deliver on implementation of the Act at pace and stakeholders are taking a keen interest in progress. 

This is an opportunity to work on the delivery of landmark legislation that - once fully implemented - will impact over 50% of Scotland’s land. You will have the chance to work with stakeholders across rural Scotland, and work on policy development and secondary legislation and guidance, all whilst being part of a friendly, supportive and welcoming unit. We are seeking an individual who embraces working with a team to deliver for ministers, who has a strong interest in developing policy and legislation and who has a positive and supportive working style. 

Responsibilities

Policy development and legislation : 

• Lead on policy development for certain areas of secondary legislation, working with internal and external stakeholders and with SGLD on instructions and supporting passage of the SSIs through Parliament.
• Lead on drafting of statutory and non-statutory guidance, consultation materials and impact assessments for policy workstreams. 
• Work with analysts, stakeholders and researchers to ensure policy has a strong evidence base.

Policy support : 

• Lead on or contribute to relevant Micase, PQs, engagement briefings, submissions and FOI responses as required.

Other implementation : 

• Work with other policy organisations such as the Scottish Land Commission and Registers of Scotland on non-legislative areas of implementation. 
• Develop possible options around a portal for publication of land management plans and implement preferred option.

This role offers an excellent opportunity to further develop skills across stakeholder engagement, use of evidence and analysis, legislation, working with Ministers and broader policy development skills. The team works closely together and is flexible so exact policy areas of responsibility can be discussed in the team as a whole and may evolve depending on priorities. 

Working pattern

This role is a permanent level transfer position. 

How to Apply

Applications for this position will only be accepted from substantive B3 employees.

Please submit a statement outlining your suitability for the role, relevant skills and experience, and what you would bring to the team (maximum 500 words).

Selection Process

All candidates will be invited to an informal discussion with the Hiring Manager.  

Informal discussion dates tbc.

Further Information

If you have specific questions about the role, please contact [email protected] 

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