Lead Software Engineer - Cheltenham

Sanderson Government and Defence; Cheltenham; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

Sanderson Government and Defence seeks an experienced Software Engineer to help build and scale secure backend platforms for National Security and Defence customers. You will work on modern cloud-based systems using a mix of commercial and open-source technologies across private and public cloud environments.

We value respect, equality, diversity, and inclusion, welcoming applicants from all backgrounds and perspectives.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience delivering production-grade cloud solutions.
• Strong Java experience, with exposure to JVM languages like Kotlin or Scala.
• Experience with Kafka or similar messaging platforms.
• Background in Agile DevSecOps environments and Zero Trust architectures.
• Experience integrating with PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3.
• Solid engineering fundamentals: clean code, testing, documentation, code reviews, CD.
• Comfortable using GitHub, GitLab, and Atlassian tools.
• Strong TDD experience.
• Hands-on experience with microservices and distributed systems.
• Exposure to Big Data technologies.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, deploy, and improve backend services and platforms.
• Deliver features that meet both functional and non-functional requirements.
• Estimate and shape user stories as part of an Agile team.
• Ship small, frequent releases to maintain momentum.
• Work closely with other engineers in cross-functional teams.
• Build, optimise, and run CI/CD pipelines.
• Own and support the services our team delivers in production.

Skills

Java & JVM

Kotlin/Scala

Distributed systems

TDD

CI/CD

Kafka

PostgreSQL

Redis

Cloud

GitHub

GitLab

Atlassian

Security

Tools

Kafka

PostgreSQL

Redis

S3

GitHub

GitLab

Atlassian

CI/CD

JVM

Job description

Salary: £100,000 - 100,000 per year

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience delivering production-grade cloud solutions
• Strong Java experience, with exposure to JVM languages such as Kotlin or Scala
• Experience with Kafka or similar messaging platforms
• Background in Agile DevSecOps environments and Zero Trust architectures
• Experience integrating with services such as PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3
• Solid engineering fundamentals, including clean code, testing, documentation, code reviews, and continuous delivery
• Comfortable using GitHub, GitLab, and Atlassian tools
• Strong TDD experience
• Hands-on experience with microservices and distributed systems
• Exposure to Big Data technologies

Responsibilities

• Design, build, deploy, and improve backend services and platforms
• Deliver features that meet both functional and non-functional requirements
• Estimate and shape user stories as part of an Agile team
• Ship small, frequent releases to maintain momentum
• Work closely with other engineers in cross-functional teams
• Build, optimise, and run CI/CD pipelines
• Own and support the services our team delivers in production

Technologies

• Atlassian
• Big Data
• Backend
• CI/CD
• Cloud
• DevSecOps
• GitHub
• GitLab
• Support
• JVM
• Java
• Kafka
• Kotlin
• PostgreSQL
• Redis
• Scala
• Security
• TDD
• microservices
• DevOps

More

We are looking for an experienced Software Engineer to help build and scale secure backend platforms used by National Security and Defence customers. You will work on modern cloud-based systems using a mix of commercial and open-source technologies across private and public cloud environments. We value respect, equality, diversity, and inclusion, and we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and perspectives. We are committed to supporting candidates through any needed adjustments during the recruitment process.