Lead Technical Architect

DWP Digital; Bradford; Hybrid; GBP 75,000 - 97,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Time off volunteering and charitable g

Bring your authentic self to work with

Discounts and savings on shopping, fun

Interest-free loans to buy a bike or a

Professional development, coaching, 
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Job summary

DWP Digital in the United Kingdom is seeking a Lead Technical Architect to define and deliver architecture for critical digital services across programmes. You will design scalable, secure solutions and provide expert technical leadership across multidisciplinary teams.

Join us to shape enterprise technology, govern architectural integrity, and influence decisions across major public services. This hybrid role offers a generous pension and flexible hours.

Qualifications

• Design enterprise-scale architectures across cloud, on-prem and hybrid environments.
• Apply architectural principles, roadmaps and best practices for scalable solutions.
• Provide architectural leadership across Agile, Waterfall and hybrid delivery environments.
• Translate complex business requirements into robust architectures with traceability.
• Proficiency in architecture modelling and communicating to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience designing microservices, API-led and event-driven architectures.

Responsibilities

• Shape and govern technology solutions across major digital programmes.
• Influence strategic decisions and drive adoption of modern technologies.
• Collaborate with senior stakeholders to ensure architectural integrity.
• Mentor and support other architects within the community.

Skills

Enterprise architecture

Cloud & hybrid

Architectural leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Architecture modelling

Microservices & API-led

Job description

Job Title: Lead Technical Architect

Pay up to £75,026 - £96,683 plus 28.97% employer pension contributions, hybrid working, flexible hours, and great work life balance.

DWP. Digital with Purpose.

Shape the future of one of Europe's largest digital transformation programmes.

Are you passionate about designing modern, scalable, and secure technology solutions that make a real difference to millions of people?

We're looking for talented Lead Technical Architects to play a pivotal role in defining and delivering architecture for critical digital services across DWP Digital. Working within a complex and evolving technology landscape, you'll help shape strategic technology decisions that support some of the UK's most important public services.

As a Lead Technical Architect, you'll collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, senior stakeholders, and architecture communities to design innovative solutions, provide expert technical leadership, and influence technology direction across major programmes and products.

You'll be responsible for driving solution design, ensuring architectural integrity and governance, and helping teams deliver secure, resilient, and user-centred services at scale.

This is an exciting opportunity to tackle complex technical challenges, shape enterprise-wide technology choices, and contribute to services that support millions of citizens every day.

Join us and help build the digital services of the future.

What skills, knowledge and experience will you need?

• Proven expertise in designing enterprise-scale architectures across cloud, on-premises and hybrid environments, encompassing networking, security, infrastructure, applications, data and integration services.
• Ability to apply architectural principles, patterns, standards, technology roadmaps and industry best practices to deliver scalable, secure and future-ready solutions.
• Proven experience providing architectural leadership across Agile, Waterfall and hybrid delivery environments, guiding solutions from discovery and design through to deployment and live service.
• Capability in translating complex business requirements into robust technical architectures, with clear traceability, stakeholder engagement and influence over technology decisions.
• Proficiency in architecture modelling and solution design, using recognised frameworks, techniques and tools to communicate complex concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Proven experience designing microservices, API-led and event-driven architectures, applying modern integration patterns, messaging and data streaming approaches to deliver resilient, high-performing digital services at scale.

You and your role

As Lead Technical Architects, you'll be responsible for shaping and governing technology solutions across major digital programmes - that means providing architectural leadership, influencing strategic decisions and driving the adoption of modern technologies and best practices.

You'll work with senior stakeholders across DWP, influencing technology decisions, building consensus on architectural approaches, and ensuring solutions deliver the greatest value for users and the business.

You'll be empowered to identify opportunities to modernise services and drive digital transformation. You'll use architectural best practice, emerging technologies and industry standards to solve complex business challenges.

This is a role where your technical leadership and your ability to communicate complex information across different teams, programmes and business areas will ensure the solutions DWP are building are scalable, secure, resilient and fit for the future.

You'll be a senior member of the architecture community here. You'll mentor and support other architects, sharing knowledge, promoting best practice and helping teams understand how their work contributes to wider organisational goals and strategic outcomes.

Details. Wages. Perks.

Location: You'll join us in one of our brilliant digital hubs in Blackpool, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle or Sheffield whichever is most convenient for you.

Hybrid Working: We work a hybrid model - you'll spend some time working at home and some time collaborating face to face in a hub.

Pay: Up to £96,683. A salary of £75,026 plus a Government Digital and Data Allowance of up to £21,657, subject to our assessment of capability at interview.

Pension: You'll get a brilliant civil service pension with employer contributions worth 28.97%, worth up to £21,735 per year.

We have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:

• Time off volunteering and charitable giving

• Bring your authentic self to work with 'I Can Be Me in DWP'

• Discounts and savings on shopping, fun days out and more

• Interest-free loans to buy a bike or a season ticket, so it's even easier for you to get to work and start making a difference

• Professional development, coaching, mentoring and career progression opportunities.

And we have an award-winning environment and culture:

• DWP have been recognised as 2024 Diversity Employer of the Year at the Computing Women in Tech Excellence awards

• Diverse and Inclusive Leadership at Digital Leaders Awards 2024

• Commended as Best Place to Work in Digital category in the Computing Digital Technology Leaders awards 2025

• Recognised as one of the Best Public Sector Employers at 2025 Women In Tech Employer Awards