Lead Data (Product) Engineer

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA); Swansea; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Best in class learning and development

Flexible working options

Inclusive culture and staff networks

Pension contributions 28.97% depending

Digital communities and career frames

On-site nursery, restaurants and cafe

25 days holiday + bank holidays + King

Employee assistance programme

Free parking

Job summary

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in Swansea is seeking a Senior Lead Data Engineer to lead data product engineering on a modern data platform. You will guide data ingestion, modelling and platform-wide best practices, partnering with engineering product teams and data scientists to deliver reliable, secure data products.

The role is hybrid, based in Swansea, with a base salary of £59,816 plus a Digital and Data allowance up to £19,700, totaling up to £79,516.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience with data ingestion, cleansing, transformation and modelling. Knowledge of modern cloud platforms and data lake technologies.
• Proficiency in SQL, Python and other relevant programming languages with typical tools for collaborative work on code.
• Experience with big data technologies such as Apache Spark / Databricks, data lake and lakehouse architectures.
• Strong knowledge of data warehousing concepts and solutions.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a detail-oriented approach.
• Proven ability to lead and inspire a team of data engineers.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for the design and implementation of complex data flows connecting operational systems for data storage, analytics and business intelligence applications.
• Co-ordinate teams and set best practice and standards.
• Design and assure robust data models and integrations that meet standards, improve data quality, and enable reuse across teams.
• Lead performance optimisation across data platforms, anticipating risks and defining standards that balance cost, scalability and reliability.

Job description

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 15th November 2026

Location: Swansea (This role is suitable for hybrid working)

The base pay is £59,816. In addition to this, the role includes a Digital and Data allowance of up to £19,700 (£79, 516)

A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

We are seeking an experienced Lead Data (Product) Engineer to join our data platform team to help us deliver high-impact data products enabling better decisions, insights and services across the DVLA. The successful candidate will be responsible for leading data engineering projects, ensuring the efficient processing and management of data across the organisation.

The role requires strong understanding of data modelling and processing but focuses on the practical ability to implement solutions using a range of technologies and languages (e.g. SQL, Python, Databricks, Apache Spark, Lakehouse and various RDBMS).

This is a senior, hands on leadership role. You will lead a team working on a modern data platform, collaborating with engineering product teams delivering services and working closely with reporting teams and data scientists to help understand and optimise our digital services. You will set direction and standards for data product engineering, ensuring that data products are well designed, reliable, secure and aligned to user needs. While you will not be responsible for building or operating the underlying data platform, you will work in close partnership with platform teams to ensure data products are delivered efficiently and sustainably.

Top Responsibilities

• Responsible for the design and implementation of complex data flows connecting operational systems for data storage, analytics and business intelligence applications.
• Co-ordinate teams and set best practice and standards.
• Design and assure robust data models and integrations that meet standards, improve data quality, and enable reuse across teams.
• Lead performance optimisation across data platforms, anticipating risks and defining standards that balance cost, scalability and reliability.

For more information on the role and responsibilities please see the full job advert on CS Jobs using the link provided.

• Best in class learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues
• Generous employer contribution of 28.9%, depending on chosen pension scheme
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.
• Digital communities with clear career frameworks
• On-site nursery, restaurants and coffee bar
• 25 days holiday (plus bank holidays), increasing by 1 each year (up to 30) & 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King's birthday.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Free parking

About You

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Extensive experience with data ingestion, cleansing, transformation and modelling. Knowledge of modern cloud platforms and data lake technologies.
• Proficiency in SQL, Python and other relevant programming languages with typical tools for collaborative work on code. Experience with build, test and deployment automation.
• Experience with big data technologies such as Apache Spark / Databricks, data lake and lakehouse architectures.
• Strong knowledge of data warehousing concepts and solutions.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a detail-oriented approach.
• Proven ability to lead and inspire a team of data engineers.

Additional Information

The role is part of the Government Digital and Data (or Government Security Profession Career Framework) profession and utilises an enhanced Capability-Based Pay Framework which provides access to a Digital and Data allowance.

The base pay is £59,816. In addition to this, the role includes a Digital and Data allowance of up to £19,700.

The value of allowance awarded will be based on an assessment of your skills and experience as demonstrated through the selection process.

This vacancy closes at 23:55 on Sunday 15th November 2026