Lead Engineer at Home Office in Manchester, Sheffield

Job summary

Please note: interviews will be held in person, further information can be found in the selection process section.

We are looking for people who are passionate about Engineering to join our community led team in Shared Applications Service (SAS). You will work in agile multidisciplinary teams with over 200 engineers in a modern cloud environment using the latest technologies. Our purpose as a team is to bring technical understanding in-house for over 600 Home Office applications.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. Where this is the case, employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in the office . Applicants can raise any queries to the email address at the bottom of the advert.

Watch this short video to hear from members of Home Office Digital talking about the projects they work on and their experience of working here: Working for Home Office Digital.

Job description

This role offers a balance of hands-on engineering and technical leadership. Approximately 50% of your time will be spent actively contributing to software development and technical delivery, with the remainder focused on leading multidisciplinary teams, influencing strategic direction, and supporting the growth of the Engineering profession.

The Lead Engineer will drive the technical delivery of their team, managing their workload and ensuring the right skills are available. You will be responsible for the work undertaken by your Developers and DevOps staff, including engineering heath.

You will also be expected to work with Seniors and Principals to ensure that services produced are best practice, including meeting HO Engineering Standards. You should have a solid technical background and will be able to apply these skills if required to provide guidance to your team. You will also maintain a broad perspective, monitoring technology developments such that you can support strategy formations.

Along with the other Senior, Lead and Principal Engineers and other Principals in your area you will be responsible for ensuring that all technical approaches being used are appropriate and endorsed, and will take part in planning with senior stakeholders to make sure that product delivery and maintenance is on a firm basis. Your remit may be across the engineering function but working closely with Architects and other professions.

Tools and Technologies we use:

We would encourage applications from candidates with experience or interests in the following technologies:

• Java, Kotlin
• JavaScript, Typescript. React
• Data: PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Mongodb, Apache Cassandra.
• DevOps: AWS, Kubernetes, Azure, Jenkins, Docker, Ansible, Terraform.
• AI: Azure ML Studio, Python, Github Copilot, OpenAI.

Person specification

Main Responsibilities

Your main day to day responsibilities will be:

• Leading the day to day activities of engineers in your team, ensuring everyone is working effectively and efficiently; reporting any impediments.
• Coaching your team as well as Supporting Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and encouraging formal professional qualifications.
• Supporting capability build in your team and in the organisation
• Taking a hands-on role with engineering delivery when necessary, blending your leadership and technical tasks to achieve team objectives.
• Ensuring appropriate methods are being used, as well as leading efforts to identify improved tools/technologies
• Ensuring engineering health is good, and working with the Principal Engineer to help address any missing skills or grades required to meet service needs.
• Speaking to Stakeholders to understand what needs building, and supporting them on behalf of your engineering teams

Working Pattern

This role is available on a full-time basis with the option of compressed hours working. This role is also suitable for part-time working hours, with a minimum requirement to work 3 days per week due to business requirements.

Essential Skills

You’ll have a demonstrable passion for a Lead Engineer , with the following skills:

• • Managing multiple delivery focused teams with competing priorities and timelines, ensuring adherence to standards within the team (PEMT)
• Working with senior stakeholders to provide operational support to the portfolio in pursuit of challenging ministerial and legislative deadlines. (DLMG)
• Providing technical knowledge and best practice, across cloud management, finops, and the complete CI/CD build process. (PROG)
• Creating, executing, and delivering detailed roadmaps that include appropriate quality management and business capacity to ensure successful outcomes. (QUMG)
• Ability to interpret complex system designs and articulate these to technical and non-technical audiences.(SWDN)
• Mentoring colleagues in developing skills and capabilities in line with strategy, team, and personal goals. (PDSV)

SFIA capability framework

Skills for the Information Age (SFIA) version 8 is the technical framework that sets the standard capability and development of all levels in the Home Office. This is a link to the capability framework: All skills A - Z English (sfia-online.org) .

We use set SFIA technical skills to form our interview questions and we will assess you against these technical skills during the selection process.

The essential skills listed above are reflective of the Home Office Government Digital and Data Profession Career Framework (based on the industry standard SFIA framework). Use the SFIA Levels of responsibility to understand what would be expected for each technical skills listed below.

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Systems development management (DLMG) - Level 4
• Software design (SWDN) - Level 4
• Programming/software development (PROG) - Level 3
• Performance management (PEMT) - Level 3
• Professional development (PDSV) - Level 4
• Quality management (QUMG) - Level 4

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £62,732, Home Office contributes

£18,173 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.

Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

Why work for us...

Find out more information at : Benefits - Home Office Careers, but some of the primary ones are:

• A Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 28.97%.
• In-year reward scheme for one-off or sustained exceptional personal or team achievements.
• 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
• 8 days of public holidays, plus 1 additional privilege day.
• Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office.

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Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window) , and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and 1000 word personal statement:

• CV – include a brief employment history outlining for each role, the organisation, job title, dates in post, and key responsibilities and achievements. Any recent employment gaps should be explained. A second section should set out the skills and experience most relevant to this role, drawing on your career, training, and other relevant activities without repeating the employment history. Focus on the evidence that best demonstrates your capability to meet the role requirements.
• Personal statement - this should present a clear and coherent narrative explaining why you are applying, what you would bring to the role, and how your experience meets the essential criteria. Use well ‑ chosen examples to illustrate your impact, drawing on STAR ‑ style thinking where helpful, but ensure the statement reads as a single, flowing document rather than a set of isolated responses.

To ensure you are assessed on merit alone, we ask you to anonymise your application. This means removing personal identifiers such as your name, age, and place of education. You do not need to remove your employment history, job titles, or any information about your work.

Watch our three short videos on how to apply for our roles: Applying - Home Office Careers.

Problems during the application process

If you experience problems accessing this advert, or you think you’ve made a mistake on an initial application, please contact hocandidates.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk, including the vacancy reference, at least two working days before the vacancy closes. Further information can be found on our website .

Do not create or attempt to submit another application, online test or use a different Civil Service Jobs account to proceed as this would be in violation of the candidate declaration.

Sift Stage

The sift will be held on the CV and Personal Statement . Please read the essential skills for this position carefully. We will only consider those who meet the listed requirements.

In the event of a high number of applications received, an initial sift may be held on the CV .

Interview Stage

Candidates reaching the required standard will then be invited to attend an interview in person. The interview will assess your Technical Skills (SFIA Framework) using technical based questions.

At the beginning of the interview, you will be required to deliver a presentation. The presentation topic will be provided prior to you before your interview. You will be expected to present your thoughts in response to the task. You will then be asked questions that explore your skills and experience.

If you are invited to an interview, you will be required to bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks. Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Sift and Interview dates

The sift will commence from 20/10/ 2026.

Candidates reaching the required standard will be invited to an in-person interview, commencing from 04 November 2026 between 9am and 5pm at one of these locations:

Soapworks, Colgate Lane, Salford M5 3LZ

Vulcan House, 6 Millsands, Sheffield, S3 8NU

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.

Further information

If you have previously made an unsuccessful application for a role with the same essential skills and are not able to demonstrate how you have developed these skills since your last application, please reconsider applying as your application is unlikely to be successful.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms directly. If you are doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinet