About the job

Job summary

Job Title – Senior Python Developer

Profession- Python Developer

Directorate – Technology

Full Time equivalent - 37.5 hours

No of Roles – 2

Contract Type – Permanent

Location – Hybrid

UKHSA operates a hybrid working model where business needs allow.  This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata,(averaged over a month) working at one of UKHSA's locations (Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, and London).  Specialist or regional roles will be based at the appropriate UKHSA site. For certain roles, some additional flexibility may be possible, which will be agreed upon with the hiring manager based on individual requirements and business needs.

Working Pattern – Full Time /Part Time / Flexible Working/ Hybrid Working

Grade & Salary – Grade SEO. National banding- £38,724  - £44,393 Inner London –£42,716- £48,068 Outer London - £40,721- £46,231

This role comes with a Market Pay Supplement of up to £5,000

New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band.

The internal roles rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.

This role is to be appointed under Civil Service Terms & Conditions. Full details on the T&C’s are found https://www.ukhsa.reed.com/.

Closing Date – 05/08/2024. 23:55pm. Unfortunately, late applications will not be considered

Interview Date – W/C 19/08/2024 Please note, these dates are subject to change.

Job description

The UKHSA Development and Operations team leads the digital transformation of UKHSA to make it a more data driven, customer focused, digital organisation. We do this by delivering services which meet and maintain the Government Digital Service (GDS) Digital by Default Service Standard (https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/digital-by-default).

 

Developers at UKHSA work collaboratively with stakeholders such as Data Scientists and Public Health officials to deliver software which helps to drive forward the mission of the agency. We employ modern best practices to deliver projects quickly, safely, and cost-effectively.

 

Potential for a specialist pay allowance of up to £5,000 could be available depending on a capability assessment.

 

Job Overview

This is a hands-on development role in which you will develop and deploy new products as well as developing and enhancing UKHSA’s existing products and apps.

 

You will work with business and technology stakeholders to translate business problems into technical designs. You will collaborate with UI, connectivity and DevOps teams in order to build elegant solutions to complex problems.

 

You will use the Scrum agile delivery methodology and deliver software in short iterations with frequent releases without compromising code quality, liaising with key internal and external stakeholders and providing technical direction on full-stack software development best practices.

Person Specification

 

• You will have a high standard of knowledge of Python and be able to work to agreed security standards and specifications using the best tools for the job to design, create, test and document new or redeveloped software.

 

• You will be capable of building software of medium to high complexity, specifying and designing systems to meet defined business needs.

 

• You will need the ability to explore and propose different approaches to solving problems and ensure you select appropriate technology and use resources efficiently to integrate multiple systems and technologies.

 

• You will be skilled at integrating and testing multiple components, systems and their interfaces.

 

• You will have the ability to take ownership of projects and the desire to take them through to production.

 

• The role requires good troubleshooting skills with an ability to identify locate and competently fix bugs and errors.

 

• You will need a strong ability to collaborate with user researchers, sell and represent users internally and champion user research to focus on all users. This means an ability to understand users and identify them and their needs based on evidence.

 

• You should put users first, manage competing priorities and offer recommendations on the best tools and methods to be used.
  
  
• You will have experience of using modern standards for process automation and testing and be able to guide others in doing so.

 

 

Main Duties of the Job

• Implement new Python software products using modern development standards and techniques/technologies including test-driven and behaviour-driven development (TDD/BDD).

 

• Support and fix bugs in existing applications, using standard debugging tools to track down and identify root causes. Work independently to find solutions to identified problems and to work with the multi-disciplinary team to solve more challenging issues

 

• Design, create and test software sub-systems and component using proven software engineering practices. Integrate existing and proposed systems with other systems to promote interoperability between disparate systems

 

• Work in sprints in a multi-disciplinary Scrum team, collaborate and liaise with delivery managers, product owners and other stakeholders to identify business requirements and implement user stories

 

• Collaborate and work with multi-disciplinary team members, including technology and cloud service providers to ensure that knowledge is shared among members of the project team

 

• Continuously seek to improve your own knowledge of work areas and embrace the agile framework of software delivery methodology and aim to reach full agility with continuous integrations, delivery and deployment

 

• Research and recommend proven open-source tools and platforms that will support the ongoing delivery of UKHSA’s products and developing functional and technical specification documentation for them

 

• Design systems that model processes that are characterised by different levels of risk, impact and business/technical complexity through selecting appropriate design standards, methods and tools. Review existing system design and identify ways to improve or adopt efficient use of resources

 

• Attend local and national meetings with key stakeholders and UKHSA’s partner organisations

 

The post holder will develop working relationships and communicate regularly with a wide range of individuals, clinical and non-clinical, internal and external to UKHSA. This will include:

 

Internal

• Digital team
• ICT department
• Product owners across UKHSA
• Users within UKHSA including key business sponsors

 

External

• Software suppliers and design agency representatives
• Representatives of other bodies with NHS and Department of Health
• Government Digital Service 

 

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.

UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

 

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Understanding of front-end development technologies: HTML, CSS and JavaScript

• Strong understanding and experience of Python and ecosystem of packages
• Understanding of modern containerised deployment via CI/CD on the cloud
• Both SQL and NoSQL data manipulation experience
• Experience of developing and consuming RESTful APIs and web services
• Knowledge of object-oriented concepts and design patterns
• Experience of the principles and practices of agile development and the project lifecycle, and agile tools such as Jira or Redmine
• An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships

 

 

 

Desirable Criteria:

• Postgraduate or professional qualification or equivalent experience in relevant technologies
• Additional languages, or frontend technologies (React, Vue etc)
• Pytest

 

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £38,724, UK Health Security Agency contributes £10,455 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

Stage 1: Application & Sift

This vacancy is using Success Profiles and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

 

As part of the application process you will be asked to provide a Personal Statement / Statement of Suitability in no more than 500 words. We will be assessing 3 behaviours at sift:

Changing & Improving

Making Effective Decisions

Communicating & Influencing

 

So please make sure you address all 3 behaviours in your statement of suitability

 

This should outline your skills, experience, and achievements, providing evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the Experience criteria or the essential criteria (outlined in the person specification section).

 You will also be asked to provide information within the ‘Employer/ Activity history’ section of the application form. This is equivalent to the information you would provide on a CV, setting out your career history. This will be used in the sifting process and will be scored.

Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview

 

Stage 2: Panel Interview

. All applicants that progress to interview will be assessed on behaviours / experience / technical / ability through Success Profiles.

The Behaviours tested during the interview stage will be:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making effective decisions
• Changing and Improving

 

You will also be required to complete a technical coding test during interview

Please note that feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview

 

Reserve List:

Candidates who pass the interview criteria but are not offered a post will be kept on a reserve list for 12 months and may be contacted if similar roles become available.

If you are interviewed for the post and do not meet the required threshold for the specified grade, your application may be assessed against a similar, lower grade role and you may be offered the post should one be available.

 

DBS - People working with government systems must complete Basic Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) checks which includes a disclosure and barring security check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed for this role is BPSS however there may be a requirement for this role to be SC cleared and you should familiarise yourself with the criteria of security clearance.

 

This role is Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants. Appointments to roles within UKHSA will be made in accordance with the Civil Service nationality rules. These can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• Nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• Nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with settled or pre-settled status or who apply for either status by the deadline of the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• Relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service
• Relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service
• Certain family members of the relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Government baseline personnel security standard

It’s important to note that there are currently exceptions to applications being considered if your conviction relates to any of the following:

• life sentences
• arson
• sexual offences
• hate and terror offences

Some departments will also consider the specific offence against the nature of the business, i.e., a conviction for fraud may rule you out for a finance role

 

Complaint process:

The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: Complaints1@ukhsa.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website.

 

Contact Details – Sophie.Rigney@reed.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.