Machine Learning Engineer - SC (DV Clearable) - Perm

Sanderson Government & Defence; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 54,000 - 64,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days annual leave

Private Healthcare

Group Life Cover

Employer pension scheme

Professional development

Job summary

Sanderson Government & Defence seeks a Machine Learning Engineer (DV clearable) to join a multidisciplinary team in the UK. The role involves developing robust ML solutions from concept to live operation, with 4 days on-site and 1 day at home, in Cheltenham or London.

Applicants must be a sole British national and eligible for DV clearance. The team collaborates across product, ML scientists, and software engineers to defend critical systems with state-of-the-art ML techniques.

Qualifications

• Degree in CS or related STEM field or equivalent practical experience.
• Strong Python proficiency with clean, tested code.
• Experience with Docker, Linux, CI/CD, and MLOps in production.
• Familiar with ML libraries and model deployment pipelines.
• Comfortable in fast-changing, customer-facing environments.

Responsibilities

• Design and build prototypes and production-ready ML solutions.
• Collaborate with Mind Foundry and other teams to solve challenges.
• Maintain knowledge of state-of-the-art ML methods and tools.
• Write maintainable production code and promote best practices.
• Explain ML concepts to customers and partners.

Skills

Python

ML concepts

Communication

Ambiguity tolerance

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related STEM

Tools

Docker

Linux

CI/CD

MLOps

Cloud platforms

Model serving

Job description

Machine Learning Engineer - (DV Clearable) - Multiple Headcount

• Location(s): Cheltenham or London
• Type: 4 days on-site, 1 day at home
• Salary: £54,000 - £64,000
• Clearance: SC (Must be eligible and willing to go through DV Clearance)
• Must be a sole British National

Sanderson Government & Defence are working with a specialist technology company, who are driving cutting edge technical soltutions across a variety of sectors.

We're looking for Machine Learning Engineers to join a supportive, multidisciplinary team developing AI/ML systems to solve critical challenges. As a Machine Learning Engineer, you'll develop robust, production-ready machine learning solutions, exploring, prototyping, and deploying ML approaches from initial concept through to live operation. Working at the forefront of applied AI alongside experts across multiple disciplines, you'll help users defend against threats, directly contributing to safer, more resilient systems deployed where they matter most.

This is an opportunity to innovate at the forefront of applied machine learning, tackle high impact real-world problems, grow your technical skills, and shape the way AI/ML solutions are delivered to critical operational environments.

Key day-to-day activities:

• Design and build prototypes and robust, production-ready ML solutions.
• Work collaboratively with colleagues across the Mind Foundry team (Product Managers, Machine Learning Scientists, Software Engineers) to solve critical challenges.
• Maintain and develop a good working knowledge of state-of-the‑art ML methods, software tools and implementation methods.
• Write maintainable production code and promote best practices for code quality in a scientific codebase.
• Provide advice and explain core ML concepts to customers and partners.

Core Skills & Experience:

• A degree in Computer Science, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, or a related STEM field (or equivalent practical experience).
• Demonstrated proficiency in programming languages such as Python, producing clean, reproducible, well‑tested, and well‑documented code suitable for long‑term ownership and handover.
• Hands‑on experience with production infrastructure, including Docker, Linux, CI/CID, MLOps, cloud platforms, and model serving architectures.
• Be able to work with state‑of‑the‑art ML libraries to deliver powerful results quickly.
• Comfortable working in ambiguous, fast‑moving environments, embedded with customers or delivery teams.

Nice to Have:

• Ability to write technical material (documentation, published papers, internal technical notes etc).
• Experience with Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Large Language Models (LLMs).
• Experience in areas of model development, data processing and streaming (Spark, Kafka), microservices in python (Flask or FastAPI), and interactive visualisations and User Interfaces (Streamlit, Plotly, Gradio etc).

You'll enjoy a competitive compensation package and great benefits such as:

• 25 days of annual leave plus Bank Holidays
• EMI options scheme
• Salary Sacrifice Pension scheme
• Private Healthcare (including dental and optical cover)
• Group Life Cover at x3 your annual salary
• Enhanced Paid Parental and Sickness Leave
• Workplace Nursery Scheme
• Volunteer Days
• Pet friendly office
• Professional and personal development

Reasonable Adjustments:

Respect and equality are core values to us. We are proud of the diverse and inclusive community we have built, and we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and perspectives. Our success is driven by our people, united by the spirit of partnership to deliver the best resourcing solutions for our clients.