Applications Developer

Essex County Council; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A UK local authority is seeking a Senior Applications Developer to drive automation and AI integrations using Microsoft Power Automate. The successful candidate will lead development teams, ensuring high standards in governance while delivering exceptional user experiences. The role offers an opportunity to shape the council's digital future, requiring robust skills in scripting, RPA frameworks, and collaboration. A competitive salary and an excellent benefits package will be provided.

Benefits

Excellent benefits package

Qualifications

• Educated to Degree Level or equivalent by experience in a relevant subject.
• Hold relevant Microsoft certifications such as PL‑100, PL‑200, PL‑400.
• Strong experience with Microsoft Power Automate, including Desktop flows.
• In-depth knowledge of RPA concepts, frameworks, and best practices.
• Proficiency in scripting languages for automation tasks.
• Experience integrating AI capabilities with RPA.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and deploy RPA workflows using Microsoft Power Automate.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to identify automation opportunities.
• Integrate AI capabilities with RPA for improved efficiency.
• Ensure all automations comply with governance and performance standards.
• Manage complex issues and resources to meet customer needs.

Skills

Microsoft Power Automate

RPA concepts

PowerShell

Python

Governance and compliance

Problem-solving

Collaboration

Education

Degree Level in relevant subject

Tools

Microsoft Power Platform certifications

UiPath

Microsoft ecosystem (Power Apps, Power BI, SharePoint)

Job description

About The Role Senior Applications Developer Contract: March 2026 Working Hours : Full-Time Salary : £384.14 PAYE / £500.00 Umbrella, daily rate Closing Date : Monday 22nd December 2025

Essex County Council is ambitious and by 2030 it will be one of the most forward looking, effective and financially sustainable Councils in the country. ECC will be a leading‑edge digital council that drives excellent customer service with transformation at the heart of service excellence. The Product and Delivery team will provide product leadership and direction for essex.gov.uk. They will develop a bold product vision, translating this into a roadmap of prioritised deliverables, planning and managing the different phases of the product delivery lifecycle, iterating a product over time to meet user needs, and ensuring products are built effectively, on time and to budget, setting high standards to ensure products meet user needs. The team will also be responsible for artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation capabilities. This role will lead, monitor, optimise and continuously improve the delivery of software components so that the Council can provide simple user experiences and achieve better outcomes for people and businesses. They will be responsible for leading the team writing clean, accessible code that is open by default and easy for others to reuse, developing software which meets user needs and creates meaningful interactions and relationships with users.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and deploy RPA workflows using Microsoft Power Automate (Desktop and Cloud).
• Collaborate with ECC’s RPA and AI programme and stakeholders to identify and prioritise automation opportunities.
• Integrate AI capabilities with RPA to improve operational efficiency and customer experience.
• Support and guide ECC’s internal developers to build long‑term capability.
• Ensure all automations comply with governance, security, and performance standards.
• Provide ongoing optimisation and support for deployed automations, implementing changes and continually evaluating service to improve the area of work while maintaining the highest possible levels of service quality.
• Work collaboratively within and across functions to think commercially and support the delivery of the best possible outcomes for our customers on a financially sustainable basis.
• Deliver exemplar customer interactions to individuals and communities that support strong relationships and a reputation for achieving outcomes and resolving issues.
• Focus on delivering results in a specific functional area, holding expertise on the application of policy and improvement of service delivery, with clear team budgets and targets set within the overall service requirements.
• Effectively utilize digital technologies and innovation across the function.
• Celebrate and consider equality and diversity as part of all decisions taken.
• Manage complex issues and resources to meet the needs of customers and deliver the best possible outcomes.
• Plan operationally and review performance to maintain exceptional service delivery and ensure political objectives and priorities of the council are met.
• Translate goals and plans into ways of working that comply with relevant legislation and statutory requirements and manage an appropriate level of risk, while continually developing skills and knowledge within the role.

Qualifications

• Educated to Degree Level or equivalent by experience in a relevant subject.
• Hold relevant Microsoft certifications such as PL‑100: Power Platform App Maker, PL‑200: Power Platform Functional Consultant, PL‑400: Power Platform Developer.
• Strong experience with Microsoft Power Automate, including Desktop flows.
• In‑depth knowledge of RPA concepts, frameworks, and best practices.
• Proven ability to design, build, and deploy automations into live environments.
• Proficiency in scripting languages (e.g., PowerShell, Python) for automation tasks.
• Familiarity with connectors, APIs, and data integration for end‑to‑end automation.
• Experience integrating AI capabilities with RPA for advanced automation scenarios.
• Strong understanding of governance, security, and compliance standards.
• Excellent problem‑solving and debugging skills.
• Ability to collaborate with stakeholders and mentor junior developers.
• Desirable: Previous experience in public sector or large‑scale transformation projects.
• Desirable: Experience with other RPA platforms (UiPath).
• Desirable: Familiarity with Microsoft ecosystem (Power Apps, Power BI, SharePoint).
• Desirable: Knowledge of SQL and data manipulation.
• Desirable: Good written and verbal communication skills with ability to present information in simple and accessible language to a wide range of audiences.
• Desirable: Experience of balancing the needs of users with organisation priorities to make the right decisions and empower teams to act upon them.
• Desirable: Demonstrated understanding and capability to work within relevant ICT standards including HMG Security Policy Framework, ITIL V3, ISO/IEC 38500, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 22301, ISO/IEC 20000, PRINCE2 and MSP.

If your role requires a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please visit: Essex County Council.

Essex County Council is proud to offer an excellent benefits package to all its employees.

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. We seek the best talent from the widest pool of people, as diversity is key to our success.

If you have any queries regarding this role, or require anything further, please email [e-mail] or [e-mail].