Data Engineer

GLF Schools; Banstead; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Local government pension

Flexible working options

Generous holiday allowance

Healthcare benefits

Work life policies

Job summary

GLF Schools seeks a hands-on Data Engineer to power One GLF Insights. You will own data pipelines, lakehouses and governance, turning complex information into trusted insights for pupils, staff and schools.

Working with the Head of Data, you will extend the platform across education, finance and operations, ensuring quality, security and sustainability while shaping architecture and ways of working from an early stage.

Qualifications

• Experience building modern cloud data platforms (Microsoft Fabric or Azure)
• Strong Python, PySpark and SQL skills with data lakehouse experience
• Experience with Power BI, DAX and row-level security
• Disciplined approach to data quality, testing and monitoring
• Understanding of data protection and handling of sensitive information
• Ability to translate operational needs into trusted data products

Responsibilities

• Build, maintain and optimise data pipelines and transformations using Fabric tools
• Develop Bronze, Silver and Gold data layers and reusable processing frameworks
• Create automated data-quality, reconciliation, logging and recovery controls
• Develop governed Power BI semantic models and shared dimensions
• Implement secure access with dynamic row-level security and least-privilege controls
• Handover pipelines to internal ownership with source control and testing
• Collaborate with education, finance, HR, MIS, IT and schools to turn needs into data products

Skills

Python

PySpark

SQL

Data modelling

Power BI

Data quality

Security & privacy

Tools

Microsoft Fabric

Azure Data Factory

Delta tables

Lakehouse

Job description

Help shape the next chapter of One GLF Insights

Join GLF Schools at an exciting point in our data journey. We have established One GLF Insights, our trust-wide data and analytics platform, to bring together trusted information from across education and operational systems. Built on Microsoft Fabric and Power BI, it is creating a consistent, secure and accessible view of performance across the trust, regions, clusters and schools.

We are now looking for a skilled and curious Data Engineer to help us bring more of this capability in-house, strengthen the foundations of the platform and expand the insight it provides. This is an opportunity to do more than maintain an existing service: you will help shape how data is engineered, governed and used across a large and diverse family of schools.

Your opportunity

Working with our Head of Data, you will take hands-on technical ownership of the engineering that powers One GLF Insights. You will build and optimise pipelines, Lakehouses, data-quality controls and governed semantic models, helping colleagues turn complex information into reliable insight that supports better decisions for pupils, staff and schools.

You will join a collaborative team with visible senior sponsorship and the chance to influence architecture, standards and ways of working from an early stage. As One GLF Insights grows, you will help extend it beyond existing education data to approved finance, workforce and operational sources, while ensuring that quality, security, privacy and sustainability remain central.

What You Will Do

• Build, maintain and optimise data pipelines and transformations in Microsoft Fabric using Data Factory, Lakehouse, notebooks, SQL, Python and PySpark.
• Develop trusted Bronze, Silver and Gold data layers and reusable engineering frameworks for reliable, scalable processing.
• Create automated data-quality, reconciliation, logging, monitoring and recovery controls.
• Develop governed Power BI semantic models and shared dimensions that provide consistent definitions across GLF Schools.
• Implement secure access, including dynamic row-level security, least-privilege controls and appropriate handling of sensitive data.
• Bring existing pipelines and technical knowledge into sustainable internal ownership, supported by source control, testing and high-quality documentation.
• Work with education, finance, HR, MIS, IT and school colleagues to translate operational needs into trusted data products.

What We Are Looking For

• Practical experience of building and supporting modern cloud data platforms, ideally Microsoft Fabric or a comparable Azure environment.
• Strong Python, PySpark and SQL skills, together with experience of Lakehouse, Delta tables, medallion architecture and incremental loading.
• Experience of analytical data modelling, Power BI semantic models, DAX and row-level security.
• A disciplined approach to data quality, testing, monitoring, documentation and controlled deployment.
• A clear understanding of data protection, secure access and the responsibilities involved in handling personal and sensitive information.
• The ability to investigate inherited solutions, solve complex problems and explain technical matters clearly to different audiences.

One GLF Insights is a strategic programme with the ambition to make high-quality data easier to access, understand and act upon across our trust. In this role, your work will have a direct and visible impact: reducing manual reporting, improving confidence in information and enabling leaders to focus more quickly on the actions that make a difference.

If you are motivated by purposeful data engineering, enjoy turning complexity into dependable services and want to help build a long-term data capability within education.

Join the GLF Schools Community

GLF currently has 35 schools in the primary phase, and 8 secondary schools. Our schools span a wide area, including Oxfordshire, Wokingham, Surrey, Croydon and West Sussex.

As a part of GLF Schools, you will join a community of staff dedicated to transforming education. With regular progression discussions, there will be a wealth of opportunities for you to grow your career, whether in one of our 43 academies or in our central team.

• A growing Multi Academy Trust with over 2,500 colleagues and over 19,000 children
• Founded upon the values of Respect, Inclusivity, Integrity and Kindness
• 43 primary and secondary schools across 7 Local Authority areas across Southern England
• We work as a community whilst ensuring each school maintains its own unique identity
• Committed to ensuring all children and young people receive the best possible education

Our Employment Offer

• Access to our highly competitive local government pension scheme
• Flexible working options
• Generous holiday allowance
• Healthcare benefits
• Work life and family friendly policies