Scottish Canals
Learning and Development Manager
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Salary: £57,537 - £62,872
Closing Date: 06/10/2026
Department: People
Location: Falkirk
Hours Per Week: 35
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Job Description
Help Shape the Future of Learning at Scottish Canals
Scottish Canals is one of Scotland's most distinctive public organisations. As custodians of 141 miles of historic waterways, we connect communities, protect nationally significant heritage and create lasting social, environmental and economic value.
As we continue our organisational transformation, we're looking for an exceptional Learning & Development Manager to join our People team. This is a unique opportunity to influence the future capability of our workforce, helping to develop the skills, knowledge and leadership required to deliver our Corporate Plan while fostering a culture of continuous learning, growth and development across the organisation.
About The Role
Reporting to the Head of People, you'll lead Scottish Canals' strategic approach to learning and development across the organisation and with external partners. You'll be responsible for identifying workforce development needs, designing and implementing our learning and development strategy, and ensuring our people have access to high-quality learning experiences that support both individual growth and organisational performance.
You'll provide expert advice and guidance on all learning and development matters, working closely with senior leaders, managers and external providers to drive capability development, address skills gaps and promote a culture where learning is valued and embedded at every level.
Key Areas Of Responsibility Include
- Developing, implementing and continuously reviewing Scottish Canals' Learning & Development Strategy.
- Supporting managers and Heads of Service to identify learning needs and develop service-specific learning plans.
- Managing and developing Scottish Canals' apprenticeship programme.
- Building and promoting a coaching and mentoring culture across the organisation.
- Commissioning and managing external learning and development providers.
- Leading the development of management and leadership capability.
- Evaluating the effectiveness and impact of learning and development interventions.
- Monitoring learning and development performance and producing reports and insights.
- Exploring and securing opportunities for external funding to support workforce development.
- Acting as an ambassador for learning, continuous improvement and professional development.
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Working across the business, you'll play a key role in ensuring Scottish Canals has the skills, knowledge and capability required to meet current and future challenges.
About You
Qualifications and Professional Knowledge
- Educated to degree level or equivalent.
- Professional or postgraduate qualification in Learning & Development, Human Resources or a related discipline (e.g. CIPD).
- Strong knowledge of learning and development theory and practice.
- Understanding of apprenticeship frameworks and workforce development programmes.
- Awareness of learning technologies and digital learning solutions is desirable.
- Knowledge of funding opportunities and external support mechanisms for learning and development is desirable.
Skills And Experience
- Proven experience leading learning and development initiatives within a complex organisation.
- Experience undertaking learning needs analyses and evaluating learning outcomes.
- Experience procuring and managing external learning and development services.
- Strong relationship-building skills with experience engaging senior leaders, operational colleagues and external stakeholders.
- Excellent communication, presentation, facilitation and coaching skills.
- Strong analytical capability, using data and evidence to inform decisions and demonstrate impact.
- Ability to influence stakeholders and drive engagement with learning and development initiatives.
- Experience developing management and leadership capability programmes.
- Demonstrable experience managing multiple priorities and delivering results with minimal supervision.
- Experience of innovative and creative approaches to learning and development is desirable.
Leadership Qualities and Personal Attributes
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- A passionate advocate for learning, development and continuous improvement.
- Highly collaborative with the ability to build strong and trusted relationships across the organisation.
- Strategic and forward-thinking, able to balance immediate priorities with long-term workforce needs.
- Innovative and solutions-focused, with the confidence to challenge constructively and introduce new approaches.
- Committed to delivering excellent service and creating positive outcomes for colleagues and stakeholders.
- Resilient, organised and self-motivated, with the ability to work independently and drive change.
- An inclusive leadership style aligned with Scottish Canals' values of We Care, We Create and We Collaborate.
Why Scottish Canals?
This Is An Opportunity To
- Shape the future learning culture of a nationally significant organisation.
- Lead learning and development strategy across a diverse workforce.
- Develop leadership capability and support organisational transformation.
- Create meaningful career and professional development pathways.
- Expand and enhance Scottish Canals' apprenticeship programme.
- Build a coaching and mentoring culture that supports long-term success.
- Drive workforce capability and help deliver lasting social, environmental and economic impact across Scotland.
Reward
Salary - £57,537 - £62,872 (Band G).
Starting salary will be determined in accordance with Scottish Canals' pay arrangements and the successful candidate's experience.
Scottish Canals offer a generous annual leave entitlement of 224 hours, plus 6 public holidays, along with enhanced sick pay, discounted shopping vouchers, health cash plan and a contributory pension scheme with up to 10% employer contribution.
Scottish Canals reserve the right to close this vacancy before the closing date if a sufficient number of applications are received.
Take a look around the company https://www.scottishcanals.co.uk/business-governance/careers/work-with-us
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